Pokemon Conquest: Wrath of the Heavens
by aldendraco
Summary: There have always been tales and myths about the Guardians that shaped Ransei, and about their duty of keeping the balance between the Realms. And along the stories, there had come the warning, that should someone be foolish enough to disturb this balance, Arceus, the Creator of All, will descend from the skies and bring calamity to the land... [Summary pending, rated T to be safe]
1. Chapter 1

**Aaand after one (1) whole year and a few extra months of planning this... Wow. It's... finally up? And almost entirely different from what it was originally planned to be. It was originally heavily inspired from Noragami but now it all changed since I've been writing a whole ton of lore and related stuff for Ransei. So... entirely different thing now.**

 **I had begun working around readjusting the first chapter (that had been written around... September of 2016? Or August. Don't remember exactly) but then I realised I'd probably have to rewrite all of it since... well, as I mentioned before, almost everything has changed. And at the same time I have written this chapter (the one you're about to read) as the prologue of my distraction story, Wings of a Warrior, that was originally planned to be very similar to the gameplay itself. But then I thought 'wait, I have this. With a few modifications, it might fit, since this one also starts off with Nobunaga wanting to conquer Rasnei'. So, Wings of a Warrior was entirely scrapped (what point would it be writing the whole gameplay, even as a distraction, when there's this one?) and its first chapters have been incorporated to the first chapters of what this fic was planned to be.**

 **So... basically, the main back of the plot is the one that's been in working and constant reforming since last May. But they've now been fused with the first few (like... 2 or 3) chapters of Wings of a Warrior, on what includes the 'Nobunaga wants to conquer the whole land' stuff.**

 **Confusing, I know, but I couldn't just throw the chapter here, while it's almost identical to the one I posted previously (with the exception that I've added many more details, and fixed many stuff, made it more elaborate, etc) without an explanation.**

 **So yeah. That's all I have to say for now. Again, even though it's been so long since this fic started, I'm not entirely comfortable with my writing skills. But I am going to do my best, and I am glad that I'm finally getting down to actually write this, since it's been really important and dear to my heart.**

 **And... this is 3022 words. Good for a first chapter? ^^; I'll try to make the rest of the chapters a little shorter.**

 **Anyway... Enjoy? :D**

* * *

 **Chapter 1:**

"Come on, Kanetsugu." Aya stopped and, turning on her heel, she glanced over her shoulder towards her student, as her loyal Froslass levitated by her side. "What's taking you so long?"

Quite a short distance behind from her, Kanetsugu was stumbling on his feet while trying to keep up with her moderately swift pace, still rubbing sleep off his eyes, and being able to remain on his feet mostly thanks to Kirlia's telepathic abilities rather than thanks to his own strength. The Emotion Pokemon cooed towards her partner in an almost motherly way, and Kanetsugu gave her a reassuring nod before stumbling a little, finally managing to keep his head up and his shoulders straight.

Observing the scene, Aya covered her mouth with her hand, half-stifling a giggle. Next to her, Froslass mimicked her actions, purring softly in a manner that clearly showcased her amusement.

"Someone's being a little clumsy today." Aya teased her student lightly as he finally caught up and stopped in front of her, panting as if he'd been running a mile while being chased by a pack of wild Mightyena.

"Well, m'Lady..." he managed numbly while trying his hardest to stifle a yawn, "yesterday's training was unusually harsh... and it's still so early in the morning...". He blurted that part out in a complaining sort of tone, almost sounding like a disappointed young child -and once more, Aya couldn't hold back a soft laugh. Under normal circumstances, she would have reprimanded him for his lack of discipline, but seeing she had indeed been pushing him to his limits these past few days –and not without good reason, as she was sure he'd soon figure out- she decided that allowing him a tiny bit of complaining wouldn't really hurt anybody.

"Oh, it seems like my dear student is getting tired..." She shook her head, humoured, before leaning a little closer to him, her clear blue eyes boring directly into his golden ones. "But a warrior of Illusio –even more so one of Kenshin's own army- must train hard every day, and constantly strive for perfection, even if such a concept is unattainable by our mortal standards." As she spoke, her expression grew all the more concerned. She paused for the duration of a heartbeat, unsure. But he should know how grave the situation was, not to mention there was high chance he could have already picked up bits and pieces of the news –and so she went on. "Especially at a time like this, with Nobunaga and his army practically at our doorstep..." She trailed off reluctantly at this point, and Kanetsugu picked up that something, something unpleasant must have occurred. His expression betrayed he didn't know much of what was happening just a little further away from their borders, what storm was threatening to break out upon them, and how soon.

"My lady..." He started hesitantly. "Is something wrong... I am aware of Lord Nobunaga's ambition to conquer all of the land, and that he's steadily making his way towards us. But...?" His voice faded off, as he was expecting an answer, the sudden change of his mentor's mood unnerving him.

Silence befell them after he'd finished voicing his question -and as a matter of fact, their Pokemon remained quiet as well, as they stared at their trainers in worry, sensing the tension- until Aya, not meeting Kanetsugu's gaze, turned her back at him and slowly walked to one of the classes vast windows, her eyes scanning the still-asleep, for the most part, city below. There were a few more moments of plucking silence, before she finally gave the much-anticipated answer.

"Cragspur fell overnight." she murmured, her voice bleak and barely louder than a whisper, and she realised she hadn't measured up the crushing reality of the situation up until now. It only made the tightness in her chest grow heavier. "The messenger reached us a few hours ago. He was gravely injured and... and so he could inform us of very little before he finally succumbed to his wounds."

Her words settling in, Kanetsugu felt an intimate, overwhelming sense of dread and upcoming destruction washing over him, and he finally snapped out of sleep for good, every cell of his body jolting awake. A man had _died_. _Many_ warriors and Pokemon had died. As the images of the dead and wounded, the blood, the calamity flashed across his mind, he involuntarily reached for the hilt of his sword strapped across his left hip, as if Lord Nobunaga himself was about to pounce right at him. He barely managed to stop himself from going into battle stance and remind himself that they were in the castle. They were in no danger. _For now._

But then again… Cragspur falling was really, really bad news. The kingdom's defensive measures were famed for their endurance and efficiency –as much as Kanetsugu could recall from his history lessons, there had never been a time when they had actually been breached or surpassed. The outer walls might have been brought down, but the city had always held. The various assailants ambitious –and foolish- enough to try and take it had never set foot into the cavernous corridors of the castle, built into the mountains themselves.

Yet Nobunaga had managed to conquer Cragspur, despite it all. And with that last obstacle out of the way, nothing stood between Nobunaga and the kingdoms of Illusio and Terrera, the behemoth domains of not only central Ransei, but of the land itself. And if the two of them were to fall to the hands of the Dragon King... then there would be nothing else to stop him from simply taking a stroll through the rest of Ransei, all the way down to the South, and slaughtering, enslaving and destroying everything and everyone that stood in his path.

Oh, but there was something else, too. Something that even by crossing the young warrior's mind, caused his stomach to tighten into a knot.

"And..." Kanetsugu swallowed, steeling himself as he fought to keep his voice steady, trying to bring himself to ask the forbidden, dreaded question. "And lord Ujiyasu...?"

Aya's expression fell -if possible- even more after processing his words, and Kanetsugu immediately regretted asking. It was no secret that the Rock-type Warlord's relationship with her was almost like that of blood-related siblings. Lord Ujiyasu, Lord Kenshin and Lady Aya, along with Lords Shingen and Masayuki, had been close friends since their early childhoods, and for Aya to take on an almost desperate frown, news couldn't be good. Kanetsugu didn't want to imagine what could have happened to the famed Lion of Cragspur.

"... They have not found a body." The white-clad woman eventually spoke, angling her head in a way so that the shadows cast by her hood would conceal most of her face and obscure her eyes almost completely, granting her an almost threatening, otherworldly aura. "At least we can still hold the hope of him having survived, although it's no secret Lord Nobunaga is rarely merciful towards those that refuse to obey him. That's still something, however. There's still hope of him having made it out of this alive, and prior to his passing, the messenger was able to tell us that Nobunaga had arranged for Lady Hayakawa to be transported to Yaksha, as a hostage under Lord Kotaro. Kenshin thinks this is because Ujiyasu is still alive, and Nobunaga wants to make sure he will be kept under control, if he knows his daughter's life depended on it."

Kanetsugu found the strength to nod, despite a strange coldness had started to creep up his spine, numbing his senses.

"I... I see." He looked down at Kirlia, that twirled around him twice, as if trying to comfort him, and he shook his head. He had to be brave –if there was one time during which he could not afford to show the slightest sign of cowardice, it was now. He had to focus, not only for his own good, but for the good of those depending on him. "And... what are we to do now, my Lady? Is Lord Kenshin planning to device a scheme of attacking Lord Nobunaga, before he has the chance to march towards our kingdom?"

To his slight disappointment, Aya shook her head in a manner that did not leave room for more questions.

"No. For now, Kenshin has deemed it wiser that we stay on the defensive. Even though it's quite possible that, should both ours and lord Shingen's army move against him, we could defeat Nobunaga. But regardless, we should not take any unnecessary risks -not with our kingdoms being the final bulwark against him conquering all of Ransei." Aya explained, before finally turning to face him, and making sure her face was a little brighter now. Kanetsugu realised this was her way of showing that the conversation on the matter was over. "As for the two of us... I thought about it overnight. We need to enhance and hone your skills to the limit -in case our armies clash, it has been decided that you will be fighting in the front lines, by mine and Kenshin's side."

Kanetsugu couldn't help but let his face brighten up as well. He almost beamed, all the blood rushing to his cheeks and his eyes widening impossibly, as if he had just witnessed Diancie descend down from the skies to bless him –which may have as well happened.

"L-Lady Aya!" He gasped, still unable to fully believe in her words. "Y-You can't be serious...!" He trailed off, at a loss of what to say. Fighting alongside her and Lord Kenshin in battle! This would exceed his wildest expectation -there could be no greater honour granted to him. This had to be a joke. There was no way the Guardians could have blessed him in such a way.

Seeing his excitement, Aya chuckled, as if she had expected that much of a reaction, and her laugh did sound very much real and not like a forced gesture.

"Try to contain yourself, dear." She cooed gently, shaking her head at her student's youthful excitement. "Someone could almost say you'd almost wish for Lord Nobunaga to charge upon us."

This time Kanetsugu lowered his head, his blush being one of shame, as he stammered a few shaky apologies.

"M-My Lady, I'm sorry, I-I won't-"

"I'm only jesting, Kanetsugu." Aya smiled, waving her hand as if to dismiss his apologies. "And anyway, it's not as if you're absolutely ready yet. As I was about to say, there are some of your skills that still need to be worked upon. Today it's your sensory and targeting abilities I want us to practice upon."

Kanetsugu blinked a little, in slight confusion. Much to his dismay, the words did not ring a familiar bell, and he was fairly certain she had never mentioned any of these before. He surely would be able to recall them clearly, had she done so.

Seeing his dumbfounded expression, Aya proceeded on explaining, without seeming the least angry that she'd have to do so. That was probably a sign that she had not expected him to know about the aforementioned abilities beforehand.

"As a Psychic-type trainer, you should be able to link in your Pokemon in a certain level and, with the boost from Illusio's Power Veins, utilise your partner's inborn Psychic powers to a satisfactory extend. Sensing your enemies without seeing them and predicting their moves into a time-lapse of a few seconds are skills that can be developed through that technique. And, most importantly, it may very well save yours and your comrades' lives on the battlefield."

"...Oh." Kanetsugu had to admit that it sounded rather interesting –much more so, as he recalled Lady Aya herself using such techniques often during their training. Well, _now_ it made perfect sense, how she seemed to be able to guess his next move before he could even share the thought with Kirlia. "So we're off to... where?"

"We'll need a wide, open space to practice. Normally we'd use the castle's roof or the battlefield platforms, as usual, but I want to see how you'll fair when the influence from the Power Veins will be fainter than that of the kingdom's very core. This is why I was going to ask Kenshin about letting us use the castle's portals to teleport towards the south-eastern plains of Illusio. The Power Veins run a little bit weaker there, and I want to see how well you can fare on your own, without their support and only by linking with Kirlia." At the sound of her name, the small Psychic-type jumped over the air, her rose-coloured eyes shining excitedly. She was as excited as her partner to try this new technique, and Kanetsugu felt a slight, electrified chill pass his spine, the physical manifestation of his Pokemon's anticipation. Meanwhile, Froslass inherited an expression shockingly similar to that of her town partner, and cooed towards Kirlia in a friendly manner, levitating around the smaller Pokemon.

Kanetsugu bowed his head slightly, acknowledging Aya's words.

"Alright, my Lady! I promise not to disappoint you!" He exclaimed, eyes gleaming with determination.

Trying to conceal another smile, Aya nodded back, and turned around, expecting him to follow, as she started towards Kenshin's chambers.

"Well then?" She asked over her shoulder. "Let's go find my dear Kenshin, if you're so eager to start your training for the day. Besides, we've already wasted enough time chatting, wouldn't you agree? Nobunaga is not going to be beaten by us boring him to death with small talk."

* * *

Kenshin furrowed his brow, steel grey eyes flickering between his sister and his -admittedly quite impatient, as his gaze was darting back and forth while waiting for an answer- retainer.

"... You're saying that you want my permission to train towards the outskirts of Illusio? Near the borders?" He asked carefully, already running Aya's words over his mind.

"Yes, that was my request." Aya angled her head to the side, smiling gently. "I don't need a _permission_ , per se, my dear brother, but I would like to keep you informed, in case something comes up and you need us back."

Kenshin let out a tired sigh, drawing his gaze away from Aya and instead staring out of the window into the far horizon, that was growing darker with clouds swirling over from the northern mountain range of the kingdom. It was early spring, but the cold had barely subsided -enough to only let the snow melt, but the snowclouds, having travelled over to the mainland from Nixtorm's peninsula, had turned into ones carrying showers of heavy rain. There was high possibility they'd have go through another week-long storm, which would only be good news if it was enough to keep Nobunaga grounded for a little while longer. But Kenshin was uncertain about the Dragon King being held back by something as trivial as a storm.

Still, that was no reason to refuse his sister's request. It wasn't if she hadn't dealt with similar or even worse weather conditions before, and even if Kanetsugu wouldn't know how to face a thunderstorm and some high winds, Aya would be able to find shelter for them and their Pokemon, or even teleport them back to the city.

Finally, he let out the air that he had been keeping in his lungs through the process of thinking, and turned back to the two warriors waiting for his judgement.

"Alright. You're free to go, but" He put up a hand as Aya immediately nodded, a sign that she'd be unwilling to listen to anything else he'd have to add. This, however, was not something that he could leave unsaid. "But do not stray too far away. I..." He pondered his next choice of words carefully. "I would want you two to be able to come back shortly if something occurs. Have I made myself clear?"

Secretly, he had wanted to warn her about not straying too close to the borders with Cragspur. While it was unlikely that Nobunaga would mobilize any of his forces so shortly after having gone through the difficult act of conquering Ujiyasu's kingdom, he did not want to risk anything. But there was no need to worry the two without reason. Aya was strong, and wise. She could certainly take good care of both of them and their Pokemon. He trusted her to do that much, and a great deal more.

Aya inched her head to show that yes, she understood, and less than a second later Kanetsugu did the same, although he added to the gesture with a bow -one that Kirlia, next to him, mimicked awkwardly, causing Gallade, next to Kenshin, to purr in a humoured way.

"Now that this is settled, we'll be on our way." Aya motioned to Froslass, Kirlia and Kanetsugu to start for the door as she delayed herself for a few extra seconds. "If anything calls for it..." She trailed off, knowing that she didn't need to explain herself -in case of emergency, she and Kenshin could always reach for each other's minds. Through their inseparable bond they could form a channel of communication that could not be passed down through mere training. It was an ability only the nobility of Illusio possessed –to be specific, only siblings belonging to the kingdom's royal bloodline, having descended directly from the kingdom's Guardians themselves.

Kenshin gave a slow nod as well, detecting Aya's hidden words with ease, as he had always done. As they had always done for each other.

"Yes, sister."

As he watched them go, he closed his eyes, reaching for Aya's mind, as if to make sure he could initiate contact -he felt the presence of her aura strong and clear now, alike a bright, pristine white flame unfurling in front of him, but he knew that the further she got, the dimmer this light would grow, the more the effort they'd have to put into reaching each other.

 _'... Be careful.'_

 _'I will, brother. I promise you there is nothing for you to worry about.'_

 _[TO BE CONTINUED]_

* * *

 **And this wraps up the first chapter. I know it's a little bit disappointing, since it's the same chapter as the other one (as I said above) but I promise things get new and exciting in the next chapter, that I will probably write and put up during the week if everything goes well. I have yet to figure out a solid update plan, especially since I have other stories (one-shots, mostly) in mind, so there's that too, I guess.**

 **Again, my writing ain't that great, and English isn't my first language so there are probably tons of stupid mistakes up there. Please feel free to point them out! Constructive criticism is always welcome!**

 **Thanks for reading it, and I hope you enjoyed! 'Till next time~**


	2. Chapter 2

**Ayyyy chapter 2 is here! Although it took much longer than I would have liked. But at least we're getting into the action, I suppose.**

 **As a matter of fact, I started this at literal midnight, and finished it just now, almost two hours later. So there's high chance this is full of silly mistakes, especially towards the ending. I had already written it on a notebook, so I was typing it from there -but I added a lot of stuff and generally just... fixed it.**

 **Anyway, even if I had something else to say earlier I've forgotten about it now, since I'm half-asleep XD So, enjoy this chapter I guess!**

* * *

 **Chapter 2:**

The wind blew in an almost harsh manner across the plains nearing Illusio's borders with Cragspur and Avia -an intimate omen of the storm that was on its way. It whistled through the faraway trees, much alike it would during the winter. Light was already fading, despite there was going to be a good couple of hours before the actual setting of the sun.

Kanetsugu forced himself to block all of it -the wind, the cold, the creeping darkness- out. Out and away from his head, where they would bring no hinderance to his and Kirlia's Link. The two had been by each other's side for years, ever since Kanetsugu had been five years old, and Kirlia had been but an almost newborn Ralts. Yet there was still some murkiness clouding their connection, holding them aback from achieving the full potential of the Link. According to Lady Aya, it was the alertness that they both possessed. The fear of disappointing each other.

 _'Do not fear your partner's heart. She and I are but the same soul, parted and distributed into two separate vessels. Should you grasp the fact that you're one and the same, there will be nothing stopping you.'_

Aya's words were echoing inside of his head even now. And so he decided that every thought other than that of the Link simply had to go. Kanetsugu allowed his muscles to relax, his breath to even out.

 _'It's alright, Kirlia. We can do this. Just... Just trust me. And I promise that I will be trusting you as well.'_

Warmth surged through his mind all of a sudden -Kirlia was ready. She was trusting him. Kanetsugu permitted himself a small, reserved smile before finally opening his eyes, scanning his surroundings for any signs of life other than the distant, buzzing sounds of Pokemon dwelling into the forrest.

"Do you sense anything, Kirlia?" He asked, holding his breath and forcing all of his senses into overdrive, desperately trying to notice something, anything that would be a clue as to where his mentor and her partner were hiding.

Kirlia purred something in her own language, but the meaning reached him clearly -she could not sense anything at all.

But then Kanetsugu felt something -a spark, a tingling sensation to the back of his neck, as if he'd just touched a charged thunderstone. It could be nothing, but it also could mean...

"Kirlia, use Psyshock on that bush!"

The words had barely left his mouth, but Kirlia was already whirling around, the pulsing wave of her energy rippling through the air and successfully landing on the appointed target, as if she'd caught her partner's thoughts before he'd even voiced them. That was, Kanetsugu realised with no small amount of pride, the work of the Link.

Yet despite his and Kirlia's coordination had worked perfectly, his sensory skills evidently needed the honing Lady Aya had been talking about earlier. As the psychic wave Kirlia had deployed collided with the bush, nearly tearing it in half, only a flock of Pidgey sprang up in the air, squabbling furiously in annoyance and raising a small gust with the violent flapping of their wings, before disappearing off in the distance of the granite-gray sky.

Kanetsugu frowned, as Kirlia's disappointment merged with his own and echoed through his mind. He transmitted a quick, earnest apology to Kirlia, as it had been his own guessing that had failed them both. He was ready to apologise out loud to Kirlia and give it one more try, but then his partner's cry of alarm echoed through both his mind and ears, as she was intently looking towards a thicket of trees that rose a good distance behind him.

Kanetsugu whipped around as fast as he would, fanning out his ofuda around him in an attempt to form a shield as, less than a moment later, something that looked alike a sphere of light combined with Icy Wind shot out of the cluster of plantlife and made its way towards him.

Kirlia's warning as well as Kanetsugu's response to it had been right on time -had he delayed himself a second longer, the attack would have hit him right on the centre of his chest. Now, it only collided with the energy shielf that had formed between his spread ofuda, exploding into a brilliant burst of golden light. Yet the force of the explosion was enough to send him land on his back against the thick grass that grew throughout the plain, and suddenly he found himself staring at the steel sky, a surprised gasp coming out of his mouth.

"Nicely done, Kanetsugu." Aya's head appeared in his field of view, her having approached him and leaned above him. He couldn't see Froslass, but he could detect her prescence somewhere behind his mentor. He was absolutely sure that she'd share the mischievous expression as well. "While I'm certain your balance centre could use a little work, you've been doing well for your first time."

Not sharing Aya's enthusiasm, Kanetsugu sat up, his hand absentmindedly plucking small blades of grass out of the ground as he ran the whole process over his mind. He had already come to the conclusion that his and Kirlia's efforts had not been enough.

"I was completely out of mark." He muttered. "I mistook you and Froslass for a flock of _Pidgey_ , m'Lady."

He sounded beyond simply disheartened, and Kirlia -having approached him in the meantime- wrapped her dainty arms around his elbow, purring softly in an attempt to comfort him. Aya just shook her head, kneeling next to him on the ground.

"As I already pointed out, this is your first time practicing this technique. And even if you're not able to sense me and Froslass, you're able to sense _something_. So far from the core of Illusio's Power Veins too." She added the last part hastily, hoping this would lift up his spirits a little. As much as she wasn't keen on praising him when it wasn't needed, having him go on with his self esteem practically burrowed under a sleeping Snorlax wouldn't be exatly what she'd call constructive either. "Your reflexes are also fairly sharp, as proven by the defensive display you put up. Not to mention Kirlia is already able to foresee an incoming attack with the advantage of a few seconds -do not look at me like that, Kanetsugu! A few seconds might as well save a life in this kind of situation."

"Mhm..." was the only thing that came out of Kanetsugu's mouth, as he didn't allow himself to raise his head, only insisting on staring at a newly hatched Caterpie, squirming away a couple of metres further. He looked anything but motivated, and Aya let out a resigned sigh, shaking her head.

"Alright then, I suppose we should call it a day and get back to it when you're in better spirits." She looked up towards the ever-darkening sky, towards the row of snow-caped mountains that rose much alike the fangs of some ancient beast at the northern end of the kingdom. A thunder illuminated the jagged mountain tops, and its distant yet clear roar reached them even through such a distance. "We should head back before night falls, anyway. I don't know about you, my dear student, but the last thing I would like to experience today is getting soaked to the bone. It will take us quite a while to get back to the castle too."

Registering her words, Kanetsugu gave an absentminded nod and a quick affirmation, before scurrying up to his feet and reaching for his weapons. While doing so, he stole a quick look towards the dark, ominous woods that were the kindgom's borders with Cragspur. Seeing it had taken them a great portion of the day to actually get to the plains, and then they'd spent the rest of it training, it was no surprise that it was almost nighttime. Under the murky, fleeting light of whatever of the sun's rays had not yet been obscured by the clouds, the forrest seemed incredibly threatening. Kanetsugu shuddered involuntarily, thinking of what awaited beyond the eon firs.

He convinced himselt there was nothing to be done about it, however, and was ready to turn around and follow Aya, that had already started to walk away, when his eyes widened slightly. He paused, wondering whether or not he'd just caught a shadow darker than the rest fluttering through the thick branches. But... no. No, he couldn't have. The next second there was nothing there to be seen.

It must have been nothing but a figment of his imagination, a Zubat at worst, he scolded himself quietly. All these news about Nobunaga must have really started to take a toll on him. They were in their kingdom, and as of that moment they were safe. There was absolutely nothing for him to worry about, except maybe his incompetent skills-

Kanetsugu's thoughts were suddenly interrupted -although if he'd been asked about what exactly had interrupted them, he would have been unable to tell. All that he knew is that one second he was turning away from the woods, having started to walk and almost having catched up to Aya, and the other a sudden chill that had nothing to do with the oncoming storm was running up his spine, as if a Glameow had raked its claws against it. A light flashed against the darkness that was the back of his mind, his muscles jolting -and less than a second later his mouth opening involuntarily, almost on its own, as if he had no control over it.

"My Lady, _look out_!"

 _[TO BE CONTINUED]_

* * *

 **And that's it for chapter two. There were more pages in my notebook, but I figured it would get way too long, and decided this was a good spot to cut it. Gotta have some suspense, am I right?**

 **Anyway, chapter 3 will definitely come before Tuesday. I will be going on holiday at this point, I will have no stable wifi, and so there is no way of me knowing when I'll be able to update.**

 **But for now, I hope you enjoyed this one! Review at your leisure! ^3^**


	3. Chapter 3

**Update: I screwed up and uploaded the non-betaed version before. I fixed it now.**

 **Aaaand here we are, third chapter!**

 **Huge thanks to Mephilia Venus for reviewing my previous chapters (I am so sorry for what's going to happen down there), and to Imperator Justinian for beta-ing this chapter for me! Our fandom's small, but we're still here to keep it alive I suppose! :D**

 **Anyway... remember that thing from the previous chapter? When I cut it for the sake of keeping it in a readable length? Haha yeah let's kiss goodbye to that now, shall we?**

 **As a small message: I am leaving for vacation later today, and the place I'm going to doesn't have any kind of free wifi. I'll be staying away from the city, but when I go out to it, chances are I'll be able to find a place offering free wifi and log in here. So, in other news, this will be the last chapter for a while. I'll be writing the next ones, but I don't know when I'll be able to post them. This will be the situation until the 16th or 17th of August.**

 **With that said, I hope you enjoy this chapter!**

* * *

 **Chapter 3:**

Nobunaga had to hand it to the warriors that had come up with the design and structure of Cragspur's castle; built into a rocky outcrop surrounded by steep valleys, it looked every bit as impenetrable and breathtaking as reputation had it. The view as well as the defensive advantage of it could only be outmatched by Illusio's floating crystal castle, and even then the Rock-type kingdom's castle came quite close.

But oh, the irony of it. A smirk tugged at the Dragnorian's thin, pale lips as he walked towards the rail surrounding the castle's highest balcony, taking in the endless fall that awaited anyone that would dare to scale the rocks, and the curiously raging trees and vines that seemed to be sprouting out of even the tiniest crack visible in the stone. Only the highest part of the castle had been built on top of the plateau; the rest had been meticulously carved in the form of cavernous, endlessly intertwining corridors inside the very rock. And somewhere in those depths, the Stone Plate - Arceus's gift to the land of Cragspur - was said to have been buried.

And yet this legendary, impenetrable fortress had been bested by Nobunaga himself. He had been the one to achieve in one week what other, mightier conquerors of the past hadn't been able to even come close to after countless months of sieges and assaults.

Although, the Lord of Dragnor mused, he was fairly certain none of them had had a living, breathing legend at their disposal.

Moving away from the railing and strolling towards the other side of the balcony, he moved towards the black mass that was his Pokémon; his partner in this conquest. Zekrom's very appearance had caused the knees of many of the brave defenders of Cragspur to shake. He himself only had to soar, riding on its back, above the battlements, and soon the news of a Legendary Guardian - and not just any Legendary Guardian, but one of the Three Selected Ones - started spreading like wildfire amongst the defenders. One Fusion Bolt from Zekrom was all it took for most of Ujiyasu's warriors and their Pokemon to either turn tail and run for their lives, or surrender. In the end, only Ujiyasu and those closest to him had remained to mount a courageous yet futile defense right in front of the castle's charred gates.

To Nobunaga's slight surprise, Cragspur's Warlord had not been a fool. He had been ready to die and had decided to do so to protect his land and his people. Yet he did not wish to see the lives of his children being cut short so early before their time. He had surrendered, asking of Nobunaga one and only thing; to spare the lives of his daughters. And with Nobunaga vowing to not needlessly harm the two young warriors, Cragspur's fate had been sealed.

The mighty kingdom that had known no previous conqueror, that had never housed anyone but its own people, had fallen.

Yet Nobunaga bore no false illusions. He knew Cragspur had not fallen because of some extraordiary talent he possessed, nor because of some inexplicable blessing of the Guardians. No, the only blessing - if it could be called that - that had been bestowed upon him was Zekrom's agreement to join him. To raze and destroy under his command. For what reason a being shaped by the Creator of All itself would chose to lend its strenght to someone that would directly oppose not only the laws put in place by the Creator, but also the Creator itself, was beyond Nobunaga's mortal comprehension. But as long as Zekrom was willing to assist him, he did not wish to needlessly question the flow of events. Maybe it had always been his destiny.

Maybe he was truly cursed. Maybe he was truly a demon, like so many people had a tendency to claim. So be it. The greater fear his name would strike into his adversaries' hearts, the better.

Finally stopping in front of Zekrom's massive figure, its blacks scales glittering ominously under the sickly light of the cloudy sky, he stretched out a gloved hand, resting it atop of the Pokemon's massive foreleg. Zekrom let out a growl that sounded like the clap of thunder Nobunaga had heard moments before, and cracked one of its crimson eyes open. It did not grace Nobunaga with any other sort of response, and as soon its eye closed the legend returned to its slumber.

Never taking his hand off of it, Nobunaga turned to cast a dark, thoughtful look towards the horizon. Heavy clouds littered the sky - surely the harbinger of another heavy storm soon to come - and the forest that was Cragspur's natural borders with Illusio could barely be seen from his vantage point.

However, a storm could not last forever, and it would not hinder his well-oiled war machine. He knew, as much as his enemies did, that brute force was not the only thing that he possessed to drive his conquests; that alone would not have brought Cragspur to heel.

Soon, the clouds would clear. Soon, Illusio and Terrera would have nothing to hide behind.

Soon, the rest of the land would taste the Dragon's fury.

* * *

Aya couldn't have been able to describe what happened during the following moments, between Kanetsugu's cry and their bodies both hitting the ground. The only thing she was able to register was the short, startled sound that came out of her mouth - barely recognisable to her own ears - as Kanetsugu practically shot towards her with speed that even a Rapidash or a Zebstrika would envy, throwing himself on top of her and pushing her to the ground as he tried to shield her. She didn't know from what exactly, but she had the distinct feeling it would not remain that way for long - especialy as, less than a second later, she clearly heard the piercing whistle of something flying past her head.

Kanetsugu heard the whistle too, followed by the dull yet unmistakable thud of a blade sinking into the bark of a tree. As he and Aya tumbled to the ground, and their partners let out cries of alarm while preparing to face the potential threat, he managed to look up and catch the round handle of a kunai glinting faintly from a tree that stood barely a few feet across from them. Kanetsugu winced; had he been a second late, or had his admittedly unreliable sensory skills failed him, it would have been his mentor's back. Aya shifted underneath him and, belatedly, Kanetsugu realised he was still lying protectively on top of her. The all-too-familiar heat settled across his face again, and he scurried to his feet, bowing his head so low that he felt a slight sting at his neck.

"My Lady, my deepest apologies, I-"

"Kanetsugu."

He wasn't at all surprised to hear her cut him off before he could even finish phrasing his apologies. But what did surprise him, when he decided to look up and face her directly, was the the look of crystal-clear confusion having spread across her face.

"Kanetsugu." She repeated, as if she hadn't expected him to act the way he did. As if it had been a surprise -certainly not a negative one, at that. "You saved my life."

The younger warrior blinked, this sentence admittedly being the last thing he had been expecting to hear. He wasn't even sure she'd noticed the kunai. Up to the last second, he wasn't even sure about any of this being true at all. It could have very nicely been nothing but a malfunctioning of his still unstable sensory skills.

Yet it wasn't.

"I...I just..." He mumbled quietly, then just cut himself off as it dawned on him. None of this had been a misconception, a misinterpretation of events. Someone had just sent a kunai their way. Someone had tried to assassinate Aya.

And that someone was still out there, masked under the veil of darkness that was beginning to thicken. Waiting for the right chance to strike again, this time making sure their shot wouldn't go to waste.

Pushing all of his embarrassment related to the recent happenings aside, he stood in front of Aya, arms splayed out in front of her. To what degree he would be able to protect her against an assailant that was, if the kunai was any indication, a ninja, he did not know. But he wasn't going to let anyone hurt her - even if he knew she was more capable of defending herself than he was of protecting her.

"Someone's out there," he muttered through gritted teeth, every fibre in his body having tensed as his gaze scanned the darkness, darting to each shadow that could possibly be hiding the enemy.

Aya didn't reply, and nothing - no fear, no hesitation - was visible across her features as she stepped forward, blue eyes glinting with sheer determination. Kanetsugu found himself thinking that whoever was attacking them was insane; who in their right mind would dare stand against the mighty Dragoness of Illusio?

Kanetsugu focused, reaching for Kirlia, unsheathing his sword and spreading his ofuda around him and his mentor with a slight jerk of his wrist. Next to him, Aya lifted up her naginata and dropped into combat stance, Froslass levitating by her side, already having started to freeze the surrounding air. The two Pokemon had calmed down by now, and were as ready as their trainers to take on whoever was foolish enough to attack them.

The air was tense and every passing second felt like a whole hour, yet no more than a few moments passed before the air rippled, black smoke seeping out of it as two warriors materialised a short distance across from the Illusians. They were ninjas, both wearing identical black, tight-fitting uniforms that were accented by tattered purple scarves wrapped around their necks and shoulders. The woman was accompanied by an Axew that looked extremely hostile despite its small size. Her male counterpart's partner was a Haunter that had seemed to appear out of thin air, just like the two warriors. From whatever of their faces could be seen under the last remnants of daylight, they wore completely different expressions, both of which were about as dechipherable as a sentence formed by a cluster of Unown.

But there was one thing they had in common; they both bore Dragnor's crest somewhere on their uniforms.

"Would you look at that, Mako," the woman purred, both hands reaching inside of her shawl in a casual manner, yet Kanetsugu had no doubts of the woman preparing to draw another dagger, similar to the one that had come close to injuring Aya. "What could one of Illusio's Warlords be doing here at such a late hour, with no company other than her lapdog?"

Hearing her words, Kanetsugu felt his face burning and his blood starting to boil. He took half a step forward, blade already raised.

"I'm not-"

"Stand back, Kanetsugu!"

Aya's warning came a second too late. She stretched her arm towards Kanetsugu to push him back, but the woman had already dragged her hand out of her shawl and released another dagger that flew past Kanetsugu, then ended up sinking into the same tree as the first one, only inches away.

Kanetsugu felt his heart stopping as his muscles froze up, ready to spring forward and attack at a moment's notice. Aya let out a small sigh of relief, yet the ninja cackled in a manner that sounded almost deranged.

"You think I wouldn't have hit him if I wanted to?" She shook her head, casually stretching her arms and cracking her fingers, the lopsided smile never leaving her face. Toying with them, Aya realised. Stalling until nightfall had completely engulfed them. Then there would be nothing stopping them for gutting her and Kanetsugu at their leisure; they would have no hope running away from two trained ninjas into the night.

For a few seconds, Aya dared to shift her gaze towards the other ninja. The man - Mako, his female counterpart had called him - did not seem to be equally in the mood to play with his kill. He was already brandishing a set of twin daggers, longer and much deadlier than kunai or shuriken. He waited patiently, as his partner did the stalling, anticipating her cue to spring upon his target and let his weapons do the talking.

"Remember, Mizuki," he mumbled under his breath, his eyes drifting towards the sky that had almost taken the pitch-black colour of a stormy night. "Lord Nobunaga would prefer it if we could bring back one of them alive."

Mizuki threw her head back, laughing again and taking a few minutes to stroke Axew's round, smooth muzzle. The small Dragon-type purred into her hand, before fixing its cold eyes at the Illusians and baring its tiny yet sharp fangs. Kanetsugu knew it would be unable to hold its own against Froslass's Ice-type attacks, but it would only need to distract them for a few seconds. A few seconds that would buy the ninjas enough time to either capture or kill them.

"Lord Nobunaga mentioned that at least one of them should be brought to Cragspur _alive_ ," the black-clad woman chirped. "He said nothing about damaging them beforehand!"

That was bad. That was really, really bad. There was no time to reach Kenshin, and there was no way for Aya to initiate physical contact with Kanetsugu and both their Pokemon to teleport them away. And in such a distance from the core of the Power Veins, it was uncertain whether or not even she could manage to teleport all four of them to safety. There weren't many options left.

"Run," Aya muttered, taking advantage of the ninja's talking, taking a cautious step backwards.

"What-" Kanetsugu's eyes widened in confusion, but he could not bring himself to finish the question as she reached for his arm, pulling him towards the forest.

"Run!"

She did not wait for him; grabbing his wrist, dragging him along with her towards the line of trees. Behind them, both ninjas let out cries of surprise and rage, but the Illusians did not pause to see the rest of the scene unfolding. By the time their assailants had all their weapons out and were setting off, Aya and Kanetsugu had already reached the forest.

"Listen," Aya breathed out, doing her best to avoid trees and protruding roots and duck under stray branches. "Step where I step, do not let go of my hand for any reason and - oh, for the love of all the Guardians! - do not stop running."

Kanetsugu, whose breath was already hoarse and his heart pounding against his ribcage, gave a swift, shaky nod and forced his legs to go faster. Kirlia teleported herself next to him and then further into the forest, guiding them through the trees. If the Pokémon could keep that up, she'd get away faster, maybe she could even alert Lord Kenshin. Aya had sent her own partner into the thin line between the Realm of the Living and the Realm of the Dead, where many Ghost-type Pokemon would often roam for a short while.

They didn't have to worry about their partners. All they had to do was keep running and pray to Diancie and Lugia and every other Guardian they knew that they'd manage to get away.

A shuriken whistling past Kanetsugu informed them that it wasn't going to be as easy as they'd wish for. The ninjas had already caught up, by springing from branch to branch and swerving around tree trunks, easily having the advantage not only thanks to the darkness, but also because of their speed and agility.

Kanetsugu heard Aya, in front of him, utter a sound that resembled a combination of a groan and a curse, and his heart jumped.

"Lady Aya-" he panted, unable to say anything more as all of his lungs' strenght was going into pumping oxygen towards his brain, but Aya caught on the unspoken words.

"Just- Just a scratch." For now, at least. Truly, the shuriken mustn't have done more damage than a shallow cut on her arm, but she'd only been able to fully assess the damage when the adrenaline would stop coursing through her like fire. At present, at least, it barely even stung. "Keep running."

Kanetsugu wasn't planning on going against that order anyway, so he just took another struggling breath and ran on and on.

Of course there was no way they could run all the way back to the city, where they could truly be safe. It had taken them nearly half a day to reach the plains near the borders, and even by crossing the forest directly instead of taking the path that circled past it like they'd done earlier, there was no way they could keep up running long enough to escape danger. Their only hope lay on the scenario of either the ninjas losing them, or being able to reach close enough to the city that Aya, closer to the core of the Power Veins, would be able to teleport them to the city.

At least for now, none of them had been skewered by daggers or shuriken yet, and as long as they could still run, as long as they were able to keep going-

Kanetsugu didn't really know what happened. One moment, he was holding onto Aya's hand as tightly as she was holding onto his. The other, he felt his foot catching onto something - a root, probably, or a hole in the ground.

And then the worst pain he'd ever felt coursing up his entire leg, punching into his stomach and knocking the air out of him. Even the scream he couldn't hold back sounded muffled and choked, as if he'd been unable to let out a sound loud enough. His grip on Aya's hand slackened, and he tumbled to the ground, landing with full force onto the stones and fallen branches. In front of him, Aya let out a cry of surprise, calling his name, before she lost her concentration long enough for her to trip onto something as well, her body crashing against a fallen log.

Yet she must have been unhurt, a small part of Kanetsugu's brain that had not yet been taken over by the intensity of the pain whispered, as Aya's voice reached him clearly. Calling out his name. Asking if he was alright.

He wanted to say yes; to reassure her. He truly did. But all he could do was let out a miserable, choked sob as he laid on the ground, praying that the pain would stop, even if he would have to get killed by one of the ninjas for this to happen.

Kanetsugu felt a light touch on his forehead, then on his face and then on his arms; Aya had found her way to him, and her laboured breath reached his ears too clearly. She wasn't hurt, he supposed. That was a relief.

"What happened?" her voice, shaking from exhaustion and the process of trying to take a solid breath, barely reached his ears. "Kanetsugu, say something!"

The initial haze of the pain was clearing now, and Kanetsugu was able to form coherent sentences. Well, almost. He no longer felt like he was about to pass out, but that only made the sense of pain in his knee all the worst.

"M-My leg..." he managed, ashamed to feel hot tears running down his cheeks but too desperate to care. "Go. Go, my Lady, please. I-I can't-"

"Fool!" she nearly shouted. "If you dare think for a second that I'm leaving you-"

Another whistle, and the female ninja's cackle.

"Come out, come out!" she taunted them, despite both Illusians were certain she knew exactly where they were standing.

And then Aya did something Kanetsugu had never imagined she would do, at least not during such a situation.

She grabbed him by the shoulders, dragging him close to her, and then suddenly the world was alight with a burst of blue flames that was painful to their eyes after the complete darkness of the forest. The stench of burning wood and flesh filled the air, and the maddened cries of the ninjas, that had doubtlessly been caught in the flames that had engulfed the trees they'd been perched upon, echoed above the cackling of the fire. The cries lasted only for a few seconds: then everything went back to darkness.

And Kanetsugu felt Aya collapse next to him.

 _[TO BE CONTINUED]_

* * *

 **And boom. Another cliffhanger. Huh, I haven't done that ever since I was writing for the 39 Clues fandom -every fic I wrote for which ended in a cliffie and many people hated me XD But anyway.  
**

 **I was glad to start writing other characters too. Nobunaga will be such an interesting one to think about and write! But... what's with Aya and Kanetsugu? Ah, I'm afraid you'll have to wait to find out.**

 **Thank you for reading this, and feel free to review at your leisure!**

 **Till next time!~**


	4. Chapter 4

**I can't believe I actually managed to write the next chapter ;-; but hey, apparently inspiration strikes when there's no stress! So that's good. And because my inspiration decided to drink some Redbull or something, I even managed to write another one-shot for Tales of Ransei! I'll be uploading it right after this one (also bless my dad for agreeing to drive me to the city again to get free internet and upload my stuff. Anyway).**

 **So, this is mostly an... exposition chapter? As well as a development chapter for Aya and Kanetsugu.**

 **I don't think I've got anything else to add? Anyway, enjoy this chapter~**

* * *

 **Chapter 4:**

The sudden stillness of the forest felt unnatural; almost as threatening as the sounds of the ninjas previously pursuing them had been.

Kanetsugu lay on his back, stones and thick roots of the ancient trees digging into his spine, but he made no move to shift at all. Breathing was difficult enough that he contemplated just closing his eyes and slipping into the oblivion that had been beckoning to him ever since he fell.

He clung to consciousness with every last ounce of his strength, though he had lost feeling in most of his body. The darkness was suffocating, and the heat that had been generated by Aya's raging flames had already faded off into the freezing cold of the oncoming storm; something he had just been reminded off by the not-so-distant echo of thunder.

Strangely enough, their predicament reminded Kanetsugu of the calm, faraway nights he'd sometimes spend with Aya on the castle's crystal roof. She'd frequently drag him out of bed and out there in the middle of the night to watch the stars that soared endlessly above. They'd lie down on the smooth surface for hours, and Aya would point out the constellations and cite their meanings and the legends behind them, as if all of these stories had been ingrained into her from birth. And that wild excitement that gleamed behind her clear blue eyes as she spoke of old legends and dragons and magic... Kanetsugu could feel whatever thrill was unfurling beneath her chest tug at his own heart as well, urging him to listen; to learn from her. To learn _with_ her.

Yet that was all in a distant past, where Nobunaga's threat wasn't there, hanging like a well-polished blade over their heads. They weren't lying safely on the roof of Illusio's castle, and there were no stars tonight. Even if Kanetsugu could have been able to peer through the thick canopy of the trees above, there would be nothing but heavy, looming clouds to gaze at.

"Kanetsugu..." Aya's voice was quiet, fainter than a fleeting whisper, and Kanetsugu couldn't even be sure it wasn't just his imagination, or the pain playing tricks at him. Yet Aya moved her arm - it had been resting across his chest as they'd both collapsed to the ground again - twitched slightly as she tried to pull herself up. The dull thud that followed was enough for him to know that she'd failed.

"M-M'Lady..." He gasped, turning his head - the only part of his body that didn't hurt to much for him to move - though it was impossible to make out little more than a silhouette.

"Are you... Are you unharmed?" Kanetsugu figured she was referring to any damage that could have been caused by the fire she'd ignited, so he nodded slightly, then he forced his mouth to open, recalling belatedly that she could not see him either.

"I think so... How about you, my Lady?" Even if he had not been able to recall one of their pursuers' shuriken finding its mark on her, her voice was weak enough for him to be aware that something had gone horribly wrong.

Aya remained quiet for a few lingering moments, trying yet again to push herself off the ground. When her body failed her once more, she resigned and just directed whatever of her strength she could manage to flipping on her back. A few shaking, eager breaths of air of followed, and then Aya graced him with an answer.

"I'm not... I'm not hurt," a few more panting huffs followed. Oh, she'd definitely overdone it. Yet, she reasoned, it hadn't been entirely under her control. "I've barely got a scratch on my arm."

And yet she couldn't move. Not with all her mana depleted, at least. A few moments of deafening silence followed again, but Aya anticipated it to break at any second.

"My Lady... What -What was that? The flames...?" Kanetsugu sounded almost scared, and she contemplated telling him it had just been a very intense exploitation of her sorcery. Yet he had been her student for years. Aya knew he was perceptive enough to know she'd never used any kind of fire-based sorcery to the extent of tonight's display. Besides, another quiet voice whispered inside her head, he'd known they were too far away from Illusio's Core for her to be able to use such powerful spells without a catalyst. Said catalyst - her staff - had been left in the castle. Her naginata could only act as means of restraining her mana, but that wouldn't have made any difference. And after all, she had no idea where it currently lay -it had slipped from her grip when she and Kanetsugu had tumbled to the ground.

Well, it seemed that she would have to explain herself...

"I suppose... I suppose you've heard of the Seals, Kanetsugu?" she mouthed, resisting the urge to rub the charred skin on the back of her right hand. "You've heard of what they are to be used for, besides activating a Guardian's Blessing?"

A short silence, which Aya presumed originated from either shock or ignorance - the latter of which would be inexcusable, since the Seals had been the core of one of Kanetsugu's first lessons under her tutelage.

"Of course, my Lady..." came Kanetsugu's reply at last, voice shaking even more than it had beforehand. "They're to be used as tethers. Tethers that tie the Warlords' auras to the Power Veins flowing through the kingdom's Core..."

He slowed down, and Aya could almost hear the cogs in his head turning as he figured out the answer to his own question.

"You... You activated the Seal to ehance your mana. To be able to conjure such a powerful spell, despite being so far from Illusio's Core... You could only achieve that by using the Seal to borrow the energy of the Power Veins... Is that so, my Lady?"

Aya felt a weak smile tug at the corners of her lips as she sighed.

"I see my dear student takes our lessons very seriously,"she made a futile attempt at a joke, but her smile faded away shortly after. "Yes, this is what I did. It was... There was nothing else I could think of. You couldn't stand up and, besides, we wouldn't have been able to run forever."

She lifted up her right hand, and Kanetsugu caught glimpse of the faint glow the Seal still emitted, looking as if molten sapphire light was pulsing beneath her skin and through the scar-like marks that formed the Seal of Diancie.

"Does it hurt, m'Lady...?"

"It's nothing I cannot endure," Aya sighed. "We've got more pressing matters to deal with. And the downside of the strength granted by the Guardians is that activating the Seal drains up most of a Warlord's mana. Even if we can walk ourselves far enough, there's no way I'll be able to teleport us now... We'll have to make it to the castle on our own."

Easier said than done, she realised as Kanetsugu tried to sit up, barely stifling a cry of pain.

"How bad do you think your leg is?" Aya dared to ask, her hand already reaching out to feel herself. She couldn't see a damn thing, yet her fingers traced Kanetsugu's leather armor, tied right below the joint of his knee. She supposed it would make whatever damage he had sustained even more painful than it already was.

"I... I don't think it's broken," he muttered through gritted teeth. That wasn't exactly a comforting answer, Aya thought to herself, but she guessed it was better than nothing. "But it hurts to move."

It would probably hurt all the more to walk on, but Aya said nothing. In fact, she was fairly certain it hurt all the same whether he moved or not.

"I'm afraid you'll have to try and stand. All I can do is help you walk." She wished, she really wished she could do more. Yet she wasn't sure she could do even that, given the fact that she herself might be unable to support her own weight, let alone Kanetsugu's.

But Kanetsugu didn't complain. He didn't whine, he didn't ask her to go off on her own. He just pushed himself off the ground, using one of the nearby trees to support himself. He managed to stand up, only a soft whimper leaving his lips as he threw most of his weight on his other leg. Aya said nothing, pretending to not hear. She knew better than to make him feel even more humiliated than he already was.

Instead, she concentrated into getting up herself. This time she got a little further than before, and didn't give up even as white spots started flashing in front of her eyes. She blinked one, two, three times, finally forcing herself up on her feet. Her stomach tightened and she bit on her lips, bracing herself against the same tree as Kanetsugu had, even as her whole body screamed for her to lie back down. She just held on, praying to the Guardians that she wouldn't pass out.

Two minutes passed. Three. Four. She counted five, and yet all she and Kanetsugu were able to do was slump against the fir, as if it would somehow give them some of its ancient, lingering strength.

Aya was suddenly alerted by the rustling of bushes somewhere to their backs, yet she didn't feel the well-known rush of adrenaling shooting across her veins like wildfire. Instead a calm, reassuring warmth, envelopped her, letting her heartbeat fall to a steadier pace.

"Froslass," she let out a breath as her partner's mind brushed against hers, and she heard Kanetsugu mutter 'Kirlia' in an equally relieved voice. She felt a fragment of her strength returning, as Froslass' veiled hand touched her forehead, soothingly cool against her burning skin. "Thank Diancie..."

Kirlia couldn't teleport them to the castle without risking them ending up in pieces. Her training had not yet gone that far, and with her partner's pain already ditressing her, it would be too risky a move to ask her to teleport even the injured Kanetsugu back home.

Yet Froslass knew how to ration some of her aura towards Aya, their shared bond tying their very souls in a way that they could sustain one another in such times. Aya felt this deep, calming sensation again as Froslass urged her gently, encouraging her to let go of the tree.

Slowly, Aya attempted to stand straight. It worked -she no longer felt as if her knees would give way under her.

"Kanetsugu, you have to let go too." she was sure he already knew, as she held his hand gently, and she lifted his arm, passing it over her shoulders. "Come on. I won't let you fall."

She knew this was mostly an assurance to herself; an assurance that she could drag them both back to the castle without passing out in the middle of the way. Yet Kanetsugu trusted her, and the sudden realisation of it made eased her heart a little. He trusted her, and he let go of the tree. A choked cry left his mouth again, and Kirlia cried back in response, anguished to feel her partner being in such pain. But Kanetsugu only comforted her through their Link, pleading her to remain calm, and asking her to illuminate the way for them.

Kirlia's slender arms were raised forward, and her eyes glowed a piercing blue hue. A small, flickering sphere of light formed between her small palms, illuminating the path ahead of them.

The path towards home.

* * *

Gallade's unblinking, rose-coloured eyes followed his partner's every move, as Kenshin paced back and forth in the castle's main hall, barely restraining himself for punching a hole through the crystal wall. Gallade purred, tilting his head in an equally worried manner, and Kenshin eventually stopped.

"What am I going to do, Gallade?" Kenshin muttered, pinching his nose as he fought the headache that had been plaguing him for the past few hours - since the last rays of whatever sunlight the clouds had allowed slipped behind the jagged spine of the mountains, his sister and retainer having yet to return. Gallade let out a soft huff, his thoughts merging with these of his partner in an attempt to calm him. Kenshin only shook his head like a caged Tauros.

"Yes, I _know_ Aya's not dead. I _know_ I would have felt it if she was. But..." he sighed, willing his heart to stop squirming like a captured Magikarp. "I cannot reach her. It's... It's as if she's blocking me. As if she doesn't want to let me reach her."

This worried him more than anything else. Aya rarely did this; only when she wanted to hide her feelings. When she didn't want him to see something. What could she have to hide this time? The possible answers to this question sent chills down Kenshin's spine. Gallade tried to reassure him again, but Kenshin knew that all these events could mean nothing pleasant. Aya and Kanetsugu were late. Well beyond late. It must have been around midnight by now, and he was fairly sure they couldn't have been training still. And the fact that she wasn't allowing him to reach her...

What brought him out of these thoughts were, firstly, Gallade's alerting cry, as he must have sensed something in the great room shifting. Then the sudden pulsing of the central crystal's steady, soft rose glow. Kenshin's head snapped up, his heart jumping to his throat, not daring to hope...

The air rippled and light itself seemed to seep out of it. Kenshin blinked involuntarily, trying to shield his eyes against the sudden brightness. When he oppened them again...

"By Diancie's name, there you are!"

And then he was striding towards the pile that had become Aya, Kanetsugu and their partners as they all crashed onto the polished crystal floor, his eyes ablaze with anger and relief at the same time, mind racing over how to scold the two of them.

That was when the screams reached his ears.

The two warriors had managed to untangle themselves from one another, and Froslass had slipped away and up into the air, while Kirlia was anxiously twirling around Kanetsugu. Kanetsugu himself was clutching his knee, his eyes wide with pain, as he struggled to keep in cries of agony. By the look - or rather by the sound of it - he was failing miserably. Aya just glanced at him before her eyes closed, her chest heaving as she struggled to breathe. Kenshin felt his eyes widen involuntarily, in what later he could only describe as pure horror.

What on all the Guardians' names had happened to them?!

 _[TO BE CONTINUED]_

* * *

 **I had to cut it again because it got too long (pity, because I have so much more on this scene! I guess it'll have to wait until the next update ^^; ).**

 **I know there's a couple of unexplained things in this one, but worry not. Everything will be covered.**

 **Anyway, the next chapter was one of my favorites to come up with, so I look forward to writing it! Maybe that means I'll be able to write it faster, idk. At this point my update schedule isn't at all steady. Oh well! I hope you enjoyed this chapter! ^3^**

 **'till next time!**


	5. Chapter 5

**I literally went from 3000 to 8500 words in one go. Yay? Good news are I am now at my other grandparets, and they have a wifi connection on their house so I will be able to have more regular updates maybe. But I also need to start studying for the upcoming afterschool tests and lessons so I don't know.**

 **Anyway, enjoy! ^^**

* * *

 **Chapter 5:**

Kenshin managed to will his heart to stop beating like a broken clock, even amidst the pandemonium, and forced himself into the cold, distant calm that he usually slipped into only before an oncoming battle - one prepared to face any situation without fear. Without emotion.

"Gallade, summon a healer."

That was the first thing that needed to be done, before he could pose any kind of question. Gallade responded with a quick nod, and a second later he disappeared in a flash of golden light, but by that time Kenshin was already by his sister, who had gone deathly still. He swept her up in his arms with ease, then pressed two fingers on her exposed neck. He winced involuntarily - her skin felt like it was on fire - though it was a comfort to detect the clear, albeit unsteady, pulse beneath.

"What happened?" He had already decided not to ask any questions until he'd ensured her well-being, yet his mouth almost moved on its own. He needed to know what had occurred; who had caused his sister to be in so much pain.

And once he knew, he'd find them and tear them apart limb by limb.

Kenshin was aware that his sister couldn't respond to his question, at least not in a decipherable manner. He didn't want to force it, either; they were now in a close enough proximity that they could effortlessly read each other's thoughts without needing to draw on their connection. And he knew - he felt it, deep in his bones - that all his sister needed right now was rest. And water, if the word that kept echoing inside of his head was any indication. Kenshin hoisted Aya on his lap, so that her head was now resting against his shoulder instead of his arm. As soon as he made sure she was as comfortable as she could be, he reached out with his free hand, entangling it with hers. He ventured into her thoughts once more, willing her to take deep breaths, willing her to stay strong for a little while longer. Slowly, their heartreats became synchronised, and Kenshin was satisfied to feel her muscles relaxing slightly, even though her breath kept coming out heavy and uneven.

 _'I'll get you some water soon, sister,'_ he let the words echo inside their link. _'And I'll get you to lie down too. Just try to calm down. You're safe; all four of you.'_

Yet even while he thought of those words, he had started to doubt the truth they held. Were they truly safe? Was anyone in Illusio - no, in Ransei itself? By now he was beginning to suspect the reason behind the chaos that had befallen his sister and her student all of a sudden, and he was afraid that there was only a single name behind it.

 _Nobunaga._

He would have to wait for Aya to be in a state that would allow her to confirm or debunk his suspicions, but if they held even an iota of truth then no one, nowhere, was safe. Not even close to safe, in fact; a quick, merciless death should be what they all pray for, in case Nobunaga's hand had already reached Illusio's borders. Yet at the thought of that dreaded name, Kenshin felt no fear, no sense of impending doom. All he was aware of was his own fury, white, pure and scorching, racing through his body at the thought of such an excuse of a Warlord - a dishonourable cur! - having found a way to hurt his sister.

 _'If Nobunaga himself is behind this, I will personally make sure he pays with more than just his life'._

Aya's hazy eyes seemed to clear for a few moments, probably stirred by his thoughts - the thoughts that must have echoed inside her own head as well.

 _'Ninjas.'_ Kenshin allowed his eyes to widen slightly, feeling her voice ring weakly at the back of his mind _. 'It couldn't have been an ambush... It must have been accidental...'_

Her thoughts seemed to fade back into confusion, as if she was having trouble recalling the events that had brought her into this situation. Kenshin squeezed her hand gently; explanations could wait until she was able to at least breathe normally. Once more, his fingers closed around her hand in an effort to reassure her, but then he paused - her skin felt unnaturally rough, and too cold compared to the rest of her body. Fearing for a possible injury, he lowered his eyes to see by himself; and as he beheld the fresh-looking scars and burn marks at the back of her hand, he felt his breath catching in his throat.

For Diancie's sake... she'd activated the Seal?!

 _'Get her and Kanetsugu to rest first, ask questions later.'_ The phrase kept echoing on a loop inside his mind, yet with every passing second more and more questions were coming up. If Aya had been forced to use the Seal... He didn't even want to think of what could have caused it. Ninjas, she'd tried to tell him earlier. Yet could mere ninjas have driven her, the woman known throughout Ransei as the Dragoness of Illusio, to activate a Guardian's Blessing?

However, it seemed he would have to set all of these questions aside for the time being, he realised as the door to the hall opened and two healers, led by Gallade, rushed in. Both of them looked equally astonished and annoyed at having been dragged out of their beds in the middle of the night. Quite a stormy night too, as he'd predicted earlier, if the dull, persistent tapping on the walls of the floating castle was any indication.

Kenshin let the elder of the healers carry Aya in his arms, and take her to her room with Gallade. As much as he didn't want to leave her side for even a second, the other healer would need help to get Kanetsugu to his own room. The younger warrior had stopped screaming by now, and was only grunting in a manner that suggested his discomfort had not decreased at all, despite his valiant efforts to mask it. He was biting his lower lip and his eyes were wet, and from Kirlia's anxious cries Kenshin could tell whatever was wrong with his leg wasn't laughing matter. Kenshin could only hope that it wouldn't result in any kind of permanent damage.

Kenshin paused for the quickest of seconds and only to give a few quick, snapping orders to the healer that had taken responsibility for his sister. As the older man aknowledged him with a bow of the head, Kenshin focused on working with the other healer - a young woman - to get Kanetsugu on at least one leg. The task proved easier said than done, as the injured warrior barely clung to consciousness, and in the end he had to be carried by both of them towards his room, since the healer didn't want to risk further damage to his knee.

 _'I'll be back before you even notice.'_ As they were carrying Kanetsugu, Kenshin let the words take form inside his head once more.

Yet this time, and to his growing concern, there was no response from Aya.

* * *

A low, vicious roar rose from the depths of Zekrom's chest as it lifted its head, crimson eyes snapping open and scanning the dim balcony. Nobunaga's eyebrows arched with something that resembled curiosity, and he looked up from the map of Terrera and Illusio he'd been studying. The Guardian's sudden alertness didn't seem to faze him. He just folded the map into a precise, careful roll, then rose from the wooden floor, mien not much different than Zekrom's as he attempted to spot the intruder.

"Step into the light," it was more of an disinterested command than an order, and mere seconds later one lone shadow detached itself from the rest, stumbling into the pool of light cast by the few lanterns Nobunaga had allowed the servants to ignite earlier. For the first time in quite a long while, Nobunaga felt his eyes widening slightly -not in shock, never. But something close to a feeling of surprise settled inside his chest as the female ninja -or whatever had remained of her- revealed herself.

She barely looked like a human being anymore; she mostly resembled those creatures that would often slip out of people's nightmares and mercilessly haunt the Realm of the Living. It was a well-known tale in Dragnor - one that Nobunaga remembered listening to with the ears of an innocent child, by a soothing, familiar voice. That was, of course, before everything went right into Distortion. He had taken a vow to never think of what was before that moment in time, and quickly shoved that memory back into the darkest corners of his mind, sparing a few moments to study the ninja. Nobunaga had to hand it to her; she must have had an almost inhuman amount of strength to be able to even stand after all that she had apparently been through. Every part of her skin that had been exposed look charred, the right part of her face burned almost beyond recognition and her right arm hanging limp by her side. Her clothes were in tatters, and the scarf around her neck was blackened with smoke. Surprisingly, her Axew was still crawling by her side, slitted pupils wide with pain and horror, although the damage it had sustained did not look nearly as fatal as what had been done to its partner.

"I sent two of you," perhaps a cruel way to start the conversation, but by now he could tell the ninja wouldn't last the night. He had already decided to simply get every piece of information there was to know out of her, before putting a swift, merciful end to her misery. "Where is Mako?"

"Dead," the hoarse sound that came out of Mizuki's bloody mouth barely resembled human speech. "Mako is dead. That... that _witch_ killed him..."

Witch? Things had gotten rather interesting for his scouts, it seemed. Yet Illusio was a kingdom teeming with advanced magic-wielders; 'witch' could have been referring to anyone. He inched his head into a subtle nod, waiting for more.

"Soon after crossing the borders, we spotted one of Illusio's Warlords - Lady Aya, isn't that her name?" the sheer toxicity of her tone could have outdone even Viperia's best poisoners. "She was accompanied by that pathetic excuse of a warrior Lord Kenshin calls a retainer. You'd asked us to spy on the city and the castle, my Lord, and bring back one of the Warlords and their retainer to use as blackmail..."

Again, Nobunaga nodded.

"And you ran into them while they were isolated, far from Illusio's Core, far from any backup they could have summoned," he mused, almost to himself, not quite certain of what could have killed the male ninja and injured his female counterpart so violently. "What could have gone wrong?"

"They ran into the forest..." The ninja paused, choking and then breaking into a fitful cough, and her Axew let out an anguished wail. But it was shortly set silent by a single glare from Zekrom. Painstakingly, Mizuki went on. "We thought we'd had them cornered when the man tripped and fell, ending up incapacitated... And then that demon of a woman Lord Kenshin calls his sister... She summoned a wall of flames out of nowhere. Mako and his Haunter..." The ninja drew a shallow breath, still mourning her companions. "They died within seconds."

By far a merciful fate when compared to dragging your half-burned remains all the way back, Nobunaga supposed. He wondered what drugs were available to Cragspur's healers. Maybe one that could render her unconscious for as long as it took for her spirit to finally leave her body. Or maybe he could find something that would instantly help her to the Realm of the Dead. She was beyond saving, anyway.

It did beg the question, however; no sorcerer, no matter how powerful, should have been able to cause such massive damage while out of the range of their kingdom's Core. Not even a Warlord could have managed it. And if the source of the flames hadn't been Lady Aya's own magic...

A smirk of realisation tugged at the conqueror's thin lips, just for a fleeting moment. It seemed things were about to get even more interesting for everyone.

"My Lord."

Mizuki's rasping voice pulled him out of the thoughts that had already started forming into his mind. He turned to look at her again, and saw that she was sprawled across the wooden floor, chest and throat exposed and defenseless.

"I've accomplished my mission," she managed, and Nobunaga understood the silent, unspoken request behind her dulled eyes. He gave a heavy nod and lifted his armored hand, reaching for the blade strapped to his side.

Before he could have unsheathed it, however, Zekrom's thundering growl held him back. Nobunaga studied its every move as it rose as much as the elaborately-built roof of the balcony would allow for, then it simply stretched its front paw, claws resting atop Mizuki's neck. For a moment, her eyes met Zekrom's unblinking stare. She chukled weakly, then gave the smallest of nods.

 _Crack._

A slight flick of Zekrom's giant claw was all it took. The ninja's body jolted, but she was already gone, eyes staring blankly at the ceiling. Zekrom let out a low huff - bidding its farewell to the departed soul - then swiftly repeated the process with Axew. The Pokemon's wide, blood-red eyes were already begging for death; once its partner's soul was gone, its own mind would be nothing more than the lone half of an once complete body. Death would be a blessing after the loss of the warrior that had been its Perfect Link.

Nobunaga stared at the two battered bodies that now lay on his feet - he felt no remorse, no. Feelings like that had been discared long ago. Yet even he knew to be thankful to Mizuki for whatever information she'd been able to relay to him.

When Zekrom growled again, Nobunaga had already started towards the door, planning on fetching Ranmaru and task him with burying the bodies. He could have asked anyone with a stronger stomach to do so; Ieyasu, Tadakatsu, even Mitsuhide. Yet no matter the circumstances of her death, Mizuki was a Dragnorian. And in Dragnor, warriors and their Pokemon were to be buried by one of their own.

Barely distracted by Zekrom's growl, Nobunaga turned his head, his eyes raising the question to the Pokemon. It just huffed a response, nodding towards the night sky. The sound of a thunder reached both their ears, and lightning slashed through the clouds like a gleaming swordblade. Soon, rain would drench everything and everyone that was foolish enough to remain without cover for the night.

Once more, Nobunaga's mouth twitched into a barely noticeable smirk.

As soon as he was done with arranging for Mizuki's and Axew's funeral, he and Zekrom would be going on a flight.

* * *

As she lay shivering in her bed, Aya wondered whether keeping her eyes shut or not would do anything for the pain that had consumed her whole body ever since they had landed in the middle of the castle's central hall. Probably not. And it wouldn't do much for her fever either, it seemed. The only thing that would possibly do the trick was falling asleep or unconscious, and the latter was a very real possibility at the moment.

She remembered only a few things after making it to the castle: Kenshin's mind merging with hers, and the healer carrying her to her bed. It was impossible to tell how much time had passed after that - it hurt too much to try to keep a sense of being - but the warlord was fairly sure the healer had performed every procedure he could. When he'd wanted to measure her heartbeat, he'd had to lift her up and hold her there himself through the process. She suspected she'd have to read through a ton of complaints on his next monthly report, about how cooperative a patient she'd been.

 _If_ she ever made it out of bed.

Kenshin had rushed into her room a few minutes after the healer had started working on her. He'd sat by her side, holding her hand - that hurt more than anything else, for some absurd reason she could not recall - and whispering words of encouragment through their mental bond. It had been more than enough to give her strength; even when the healer said she might not even make it to see the next sunrise.

Drained. Overworked. Burned-out.

She had used up every last drop of mana her body could provide: when she'd activated the Seal, and then when she and Kanetsugu were nearing the city, when she'd thought they were close enough to the Core for her to be able to pull one last act and teleport them to the castle. There was no other choice -Kanetsugu would have collapsed at any moment, and she had to bring him safe to the castle. She'd felt the slight surge of strength as they'd entered the range of the Power Veins. Along with whatever support Froslass could provide, she'd thought it would be enough to replenish at least part of her energy.

She'd thought wrong.

The teleportation had felt normal, up until they were halfway through the process. And then, amidst the swirling lights, she'd felt it; the tugging for something that wasn't there anymore. The demand for something she did not have. Then there was pain, and heat, and fear - because she didn't know what would happen should the spell give way during the teleportation itself. It had taken everything she had, and everything she _didn't_ have, to see the action to the end and land them both safely in front of Kenshin's shocked eyes.

From then on, it had been nothing but agony. And she supposed that this had been cosmic punishment for attempting to overstep the boundaries of her own power. Yet in a sense, it had felt liberating as well; she could give in to weakness, could submit to it without having to worry about Kanetsugu or their partners or anyone else. She could finally give up.

 _'Don't you dare.'_

She wasn't entirely sure if it was telepathy or if Kenshin had actually voiced the words, but his tone was unmistakable. Fussing-big-brother tone, she called it. Which, she mused, was ridiculous. Wasn't she the oldest of the two?

 _'If you give up, if you die on me, I'll find a way to haunt you in the afterworld until your ghost goes mad.'_

 _'Very comforting,'_ she'd wanted to respond. Yet she couldn't even do that. For the first time in their lifetimes, she couldn't even state her feelings or thoughts through their connection. She was so pathetically weak that she couldn't even _think_. Yet Kenshin must have known how she felt, how much everything hurt and burned. That was a small amount of comfort; to know that he understood, and that he was there. To know that even if she did die that night, she wouldn't die alone.

She let out a weak sigh when he placed a washcloth soaked in blissfully freezing water over her forehead. It was relieving, even if the rest of her body still felt as if a Charizard had set it on fire. But the healer - and Kenshin, for the matter - had thought it was a splendidly good idea to pile half the castle's blankets on top of her, leaving her to struggle beneath them. She'd tried to kick them off at first, but she couldn't move an inch. And she was certain Kenshin would have pulled them back onto her anyway.

She fluttered her eyes open as Kenshin's voice echoed again in her mind.

 _'I don't suppose I should ask about what happened?'_

 _'Don't even think about it...'_ With some satisfaction, she realised that her thoughts reached him this time. Did that mean she was improving? From the sudden spasm that overtook her, she figured she probably wasn't.

 _'Easy.'_ She sensed her brother's words, and realised she'd let out an involuntary cry, although whether it had been due to pain or frustration, she couldn't be sure. Kenshin's hand curling around her own helped her relax as much as she could, and he rubbed his fingers against the bandages that had been wrapped around it. Beneath them, she could feel the Seal pulsing with the rhythm of her heartbeat, yet she knew the burns would be gone in a few day's time, and the scars would heal. It would look and feel as if nothing had ever happened.

 _If_ she lived.

 _'Is... Is Kanetsugu alright?'_ She'd wanted to persuade herself her student wasn't in any danger, and that she'd only asked as a distraction. Yet she couldn't know; she didn't know what had become of him when the teleportation was over. She hadn't even been able to so much as look his way, and the only indication she had of him being there, hopefully still in one piece, were his cries as they'd echoed off the halls.

 _'I sent Gallade to ask earlier. He's sprained his knee badly; probably won't walk for about a month. But the healer's given him a few sedatives and painkillers, and now he's sleeping like a newborn Swablu."_

 _"Why can't_ I _take sedatives too?'_

 _'Slowing down your body's functioning right now would most likely kill you.'_

 _'Death would certainly feel much better than what I'm feeling right now.'_

 _'I'm sure of it, but I'm not really fond of the idea. There would be no one for you to tease in the Realm of the Dead, after all. Think about how dull that's going to be.'_

This time Aya forced her eyes to open fully, even as the dim glow of the candleflame burning at her nightstand was enough to make her head throb with pain. She fought the urge to shut her eyes again, already impressed by the fact she could open them at all. She forced a smile onto her lips, even if it ended up turning into a wince.

 _'I'd still be able to tease you. As a ghost, nonetheless.'_

 _'You'd haunt me?'_

 _'Most certainly.'_

The distinct sound of a huff came out of Kenshin's mouth. She could sense the mental equivalent of laughter resonating through their bond, but she didn't pay it much attention. She was too preoccupied with the fact that she almost felt... stronger. Almost, but the difference was there.

She forced her head to turn as much as possible, even as she was met with another jolt of pain. Her clouded eyes fell on Kenshin's hand, and then widened as she realised her brother's skin was glowing wherever it was coming into contact with hers. The soft blue light emanating from his hand was unmistakable, even when she was unsure about how trustworthy her senses currently were.

 _'What are you doing?'_ Still too weak to speak, but the tone she wanted to convey was traceable through their bond. Kenshin shifted his eyes from their hands to hers.

 _'What does it feel like?'_

Aya felt her heart skipping a beat, and this time it wasn't due to the pain or fever.

 _'Fool.'_ The word felt too light in her head, even if with the present situation she could not muster enough energy to substitute it with anything more elaborate _'Are you out of your mind? It could kill you!'_ She tried to pry her hand away from his, to no avail.

 _'It's the only way to assure you'll make it,'_ Kenshin was perfectly calm, not seeming to mind the tension that she was initiating through their link. _'I'm only going to transfer enough of my mana to you to make sure your body will stabilize. With that, your own mana will be able to replenish itself.'_

 _'Do you have any idea how unstable whatever I've left of my energy is right now? It could... It could drain you in seconds if I lost control. It could absorb all of your mana and kill you.'_

Aya would have never been able to forget the similar incident that had occured between her and Kanetsugu, when the latter's magic had awakened for the first time. Kanetsugu's magic had been unstable, wild, and had nearly killed both of them by draining him first, and then Aya, of the very energy that kept them alive. She couldn't stand the thought of her brother endangering himself in such a way.

 _'Your energy is too weak and too few to be able to drain mine,'_ Kenshin had tried to sound reassuring, but Aya he wasn't even certain.

 _'If you give me more-'_

 _'Calm down.'_ His eyes locked onto hers, and for the first time Aya felt her vision was clear enough to detect the black circles that had formed underneath them. She figured he'd been almost sickened with worry. For her, for Kanetsugu, for everything. _'I'm only giving you the bare minimum of mana you'll need to keep yourself alive. Your body will do the rest just fine, without sucking me dry in the process.'_

The two caught each other's stare, none of them daring to move a single inch, even as Kenshin continued to transfer bits of his energy to her.

 _'Trust me, sister. We'd always trusted each other.'_

His words echoed inside of her head, and Aya realised her brother's face was strained and unnaturally pale, his steel-grey eyes dull and lifeless. She lowered her gaze slowly, looking at their hands. She was already feeling her body adjusting to his mana, using it as a crutch to replenish her own. It felt strange, as if whatever had been broken inside of her was already mending itself, although it wasn't entirely pleasant. It felt a lot similar to undergoing stitches; not painless or comforting, but good enough to know that she wasn't bleeding to death anymore.

Her temperature was starting to drop, and her muscles finally relaxed enough that the pain subsided. She let out an involuntary sigh, suddenly appreciating all the blankets she'd been buried under; with the fever starting to break, she had started to become aware of room being chillingly cold.

"Thank you, brother," she managed, finally strong enough to say it aloud. Kenshin seemed surprised by that, and he let a small smile play at his lips, if only for a moment. He gave her hand one last squeeze - more for comfort than anything else - and let go, slumping back against the chair that he'd dragged next to her bed earlier.

"It was nothing," he muttered quietly, running a hand over his eyes. Guardians, he felt exhausted. "The next time something like that happens, whatever it is, please try not to almost kill yourself in the process."

That invited a weak chuckle from Aya.

"For a moment I thought you'd ask what exactly happened," she teased him, and Kenshin let out a low laugh of his own; the fact that she was able to mess with him was a solid indication of her feeling better, and he felt a small amount of the crushing weight on his shoulders being lifted away.

"Right," he muttered, shaking his head. "I was hoping you'd tell me. But if you need to rest first, then I'm sure whatever it is can wait a few hours."

"No, I'll tell you," the volume of her voice indicated anything but, though Kenshin realised that wasting time could actually be fatal in the not-so-long run. It could be Nobunaga they were talking about after all. So despite the weariness that seeped into her voice, he didn't insist and let her speak, not interrupting her once. When she finished her story, Kenshin's frown deepened, as renewed worry sparked behind his stormy eyes. Instinctively, his hand reached for his sister's again as he ran her words over in his mind.

"So you think they were assigned to taking you and Kanetsugu hostages," he asked, hoping more than anything that it had all been a misconception. Yet it couldn't have: she'd sworn she'd heard the ninjas' words loud and clear. According to them, Nobunaga had assigned them to capture one of Illusio's Warlords along with their retainer. And as much dread as the thought brought him, there had to be but one reason behind that.

"He would have used you to blackmail me into surrendering," he muttered, gritting his teeth. Somehow, saying it aloud caused the realisation to burden him even more. To just hand Illusio over to Nobunaga without the slightest amount of resistance would have been a death keel for the rest of Ransei. Yet if that had been the Demon King's plan, he'd certainly calculated correctly; Kenshin would have never left Aya and Kanetsugu to his claws. He knew it was a Warlord's greatest weakness, and he was ashamed that it could command him, yet he'd rather surrender the whole kingdom than lose his sister or watch Kanetsugu perish. He could have never faced Kagetsuna, should he allow such fate to befall his eldest son.

Aya's uncomfortable huff brought him out of his musings, and he realised he had gripped her hand too tightly. Quickly he relaxed his fingers, even though he didn't let go.

"If that had been Nobunaga's plan," Aya said carefully, having detected his thoughts and emotions through their bond, "then I have to ask you, Kenshin; no matter what happens to me, do not surrender. My life isn't worth as much as the rest of Ransei's safety. You have to fulfill your duty as a Warlord, and I have to fulfil mine."

But Kenshin grunted behind his teeth, shaking his head.

"Would you do the same? Would you let Nobunaga kill me and Kanetsugu? Would you chose to keep Illusio, if you were in my stead?" even though Aya averted her eyes and looked away, he already knew the answer. They'd both known the answer, ever since they were children, when fate had first brought them together. They could have never turned away from each other.

"No. No, I would never let you perish..." she murmured. "But this is why... this is why you must be stronger if it comes to this. We cannot allow Nobunaga to pass through Illusio or Terrera."

"Then we fight," for the first time that night, wildness gleamed into Kenshin's eyes, and determination slipped into his voice. "We will not surrender. We'll show him what it is like to fight with justice on our side."

Aya contemplated reminding him that while they may have justice on their side, Nobunaga had a living legend on his own, and that the only kingdom in Ransei that had never before been conquered had recently fallen under his control. But there was no point in this, at least not yet. Instead, she picked up her story from where she'd left it before.

"Kanetsugu and I ran," she went on, "Of course, they would have pinned us down sooner or later. When Kanetsugu fell and injured his leg, we could go no further and we were surrounded. We were too far away from the Core, and I didn't have my staff with me. I..." She glimpsed at the bandages around her hand, "I'm sure you've noticed already, but I activated the Seal of Diancie -it was the only thing I could think of... and I am certain you know this, but the Seal just grants us access to magic. Not control over it."

It had come so fast; a surge of power that could have burned right through her, then all her energy dissipating in one go as the raging blue flames consumed the surrounding vegetation, along with their pursuers. But it had not been her choice for her mana to materialise in this form. She had little to no control over Fire-based magic, as it directly contrasted with her natural affinity for Ice. She could have incinerated both Kanetsugu and herself just as easily as she had done to the ninjas, and she supposed it had been only Diancie's will that had protected them from her own magic turning against them.

"We tried to walk back after that," she felt her throat burning, but forced the words out nonetheless. "Kanetsugu would never have made it to the city; teleportation had been the only choice. When we were near the range of the central Power Veins, and with Froslass' help, I felt a little stronger. I thought I could safely teleport us." Which, to her credit, had actually worked. From there on, Kenshin knew the rest. He knitted his eyebrows together, barely holding back the reprimanding that he'd failed to deliver earlier. Instead, he focused on another matter that had been bothering him for the last few hours.

"I tried to reach you. Why were you blocking me?" He could have helped. He could have gone out there and brought them back to the castle himself if needed, and the fact that these had not been her own thoughts as well almost hurt him. Didn't she trust him enough for it?

Aya just sighed apologetically.

"I thought I could do it on my own. I wanted to avoid upsetting you further, since by then I was sure our absence would have already set you mad with worry." Which had actually been the case. "In the end, I suppose I just made everything worse with my foolishness. Forgive me."

It was Kenshin's turn to let out a quiet sigh. He would have very much liked to scold her for causing him so much grief, but that would have been vain. Aya had always been like that; even when she'd been too scared, too weak to stand up for herself, she'd always tried to make it through without anyone's help. There would be no point complaining to her about that now. Besides, he was certain that Aya had received enough punishment already.

"Let's hope it won't happen again," was all he could bring himself to say. And by 'it', he meant everything: from the ninjas trying to take them hostage, the attempted murder, to Aya almost burning herself out. "But whatever is done is done, and the rest can wait until tomorrow. You should just rest now-"

There was a sudden knock on the door that interrupted him, and caused both of them to jolt slightly. A second later, Aya chuckled weakly at their own foolishness; as if whoever Nobunaga had sent would bother to knock. But they were both exhausted and on edge. Such a reaction was only natural.

"Come in," Kenshin called tiredly. He mostly expected one of the healers, perhaps having come to see how their patient was faring.

Yet the person that hesitantly pushed the door open and peeked inside was clearly no healer. Only a young girl that couldn't have been more than fourteen years old, her pale lavender-coloured hair messy as if she'd just gotten out of bed and dragged herself there amidst the darkness. Which was probably what she'd done.

"Sumire," Kenshin breathed, shaking his head as if he was unable to believe in his eyes. "Come in."

The girl lost no time and skipped into the room, stride uncertain. She bowed quickly, yet her eyes - olive-green, identical to Kanetsugu's - scanned her Lord and Lady carefully, barely holding back the words that were playing in her lips. So much different than what she was usually like, Aya thought as she decided to help her out of the difficult situation.

"Why are you up at this hour, Sumire?" she said lightly, teasing the girl as she'd always done. Despite that, it must have been a handful of hours past midnight - Sumire had no reason to be awake. "Don't you know what happens to little girls who wander out of their rooms at night? Haven't I warned you about the rogue ghosts that roam the corridors and snatch naughty children?"

Kenshin groaned, rubbing the bridge of his nose to try and keep away the headache. He shot a quick, annoyed glance at his sister.

 _'Don't scare the kids,'_ he scolded her mentally, before shifting his attention to the girl, that still waiting. "What's wrong, Sumire? Tell us."

"I..." the girl's already high-pitched voice came out almost shrill as she struggled to remain calm, her hands fidgeting with a loose thread of her lilac yukata. "There seemed to be a lot of noise a few hours ago, and I woke up. But Yoshichi told me not to worry, just to stay in bed, and he'd go to see by himself what the fuss was all about. But he was taking too long to come back, and so I went to see by myself..." She trailed off, lowering her eyes in aknowledgement of Kenshin not being exactly fond of her snooping around where it wasn't her business. Yet Kenshin guessed what her next words were going to be, and his face remained as calm as ever as she went on, "Big Brother Kanny is hurt...?"

There was a questioning tone in her voice, almost as if she didn't want to believe it. Almost as if she was anticipating Kenshin or Aya to assure her that it was all a big misunderstanding, or a really mean way of them paying her back for all the pranks she'd played on them the last few weeks. But she must have registered the heavy atmosphere, and read their grim expressions, because her face fell all the more. Kenshin resigned, and only allowed himself a tired breath, letting his shoulders slump.

"It's not serious or life-threatening," he started, well aware that this would be the first - if not only - piece of information Sumire would be interested in. "He's sleeping now, too. He's only hurt his leg, so he just won't be able to walk for a short while."

Sumire's shoulders seemed to relax a little, and she let out a quite audible sound of relief, even as her face was still tense with worry; she probably wasn't taking too well to the fact that her brother had _actually_ gotten hurt. Yet she made no move to leave, her eyes fluttering from Kenshin to Aya and then back again, as if another question was trying to find its way out of her pouting lips.

"Will Lord Nobunaga come?" She eventually asked, all of a sudden, grim realisation shimmering behind her green eyes. "Will we have to fight him?"

Kenshin wondered whether or not he should correct her on the use of 'we', because even if Nobunaga did come, there was no way he and Aya would allow her to participate in such a battle. She was Kanetsugu's and Yoshichi's sister, so there was no doubt she'd grow up to be a formidable warrior just like them. But for now she was still a child, and she was still in training. She had only come to the castle about a couple of years ago and she simply wasn't ready yet. However, it seemed that at least for now the lecture would have to wait.

"Even if he does come," Aya started, before Kenshin could have even thought of a more comforting answer. "We will not lose to him. We will fight, and we will win."

Aya had certainly tried to reassure her, but the answer clearly upset Sumire all the more. She said nothing, however, just nodded in aknowledgement to what she'd just been told. Not a child seeking comfort, but a warrior accepting her superiors' commands.

"Yes, m'Lady..." she said weakly, nervously swinging back and forth on her heels; alright then, still very much a child. A scared one, for that matter. Aya and Kenshin exchanged a quick look of understanding.

"Are you scared, Sumire?" During the two years the girl had spent in the castle, Aya had never seen her like that; she'd always been so full of energy, so full of life. Always a bouncing, noisy bother, but always cheerful, always optimistic, never backing down before a challenge. But this wasn't going to be a petty squabble with Terrera, she supposed. This was an all-out war, and Sumire was still young. It was only natural for her to be scared out of her mind, especially after having witnessed her injured brother.

And yet, Sumire still shook her head from side to side, refusing even now to show any kind of fear.

"I-I'm not scared." She mumbled stubbornly, even though her wobbling lower lip clearly suggested otherwise. "Not... Not for myself. But I... Kanny... He got hurt and... I don't want... I don't want to lose-"

She stopped, trying to bite back a chocked sob as she lifted both hands in her eyes, frantically trying to wipe away the tears that had flooded them. But eventually her emotions got the best of her, and she gave up and plainly stood there, in the middle of the room, her small body shaking as she cried. Kenshin sighed, getting up from his seat and aproaching the young girl.

"Come on, now," he clasped a firm yet reassuring hand at her shoulder. "I thought you were a brave Illusian warrior." In training, he'd wanted to add just to be safe, but he held back at the last moment. "Your brothers wouldn't like to see you cry. Especially Kanetsugu."

Sumire sniffled, still rubbing her eyes frantically as if trying to hide the all-too-obvious fact that she was crying. She didn't reply to Kenshin at all, neither did she react when he pushed her gently, urging her to sit next to Aya on the bed. She did, although mostly out of intuition, of obedience to him; obedience which she'd rarely showed under any other situation. Aya sat up, which much to her displeasure took more effort and time than what she'd expected, and gently pulled Sumire into her embrace.

"Hush," she pet the girl's head gently. "Come, brave warriors don't cry. Besides," she winked playfully, trying to catch her attention, "you don't want these big scary ghosts coming to get you, do you?"

That got Sumire to giggle between her sobs, even if her tearful smile only lasted for a few seconds. "There are no ghosts in the corridors, Lady Aya."

"Hmm, is that so? And how would you know?" Aya continued to tease her, in hopes of it working like the first time.

"Yoshichi and I stayed up all night last week, looking out for them," slight guilt shone behind Sumire's moist eyes as she admitted it, even though there was high chance both her Lord and Lady already knew. There were few things that they didn't know about what was going on into the castle, after all. "Nothing happened..." Her voice faded, and tears glistered in the corners of her eyes again. She quickly turned away, before they could see her start to cry all over again.

Aya just shook her head in resignation, and held the girl's hand in hers.

"I know you're scared for your brothers," she said softly, seeing there was no evading the subject at hand. "And this is going to be the first time you witness a real war. But we all get scared. The first time Kenshin and I had to jump into an actual battle, both of us were clueless and terrified beyond measure. And as if that wasn't bad enough already, a whole army was suddenly counting on us, since our father had left his last breath on the battlefield the previous day."

"I wasn't much older than you back then, Sumire," Kenshin joined in. "I was sixteen, and Aya had just barely turned eighteen. Illusio's fate was depending almost entirely on two recently-orphaned teenagers that had never seen a real battle before."

Miraculously, their narration had gotten Sumire's tears to finally stop, and now her eyes were wide and gleaming under the candlelight, as she eagerly awaited to hear the rest of the story. Before this could change again, Aya continued.

"I was scared I'd lose Kenshin. And he was scared he'd lose me."

The look on Sumire's eyes clearly conveyed her thoughts. Both Warlords could almost hear the silent remark: _'You couldn't have been scared, my Lady. You and Lord Kenshin are fearless!'._

"Do you not believe me, Sumire?"

Sumire opened her mouth, then closed it again, seeming to the older warriors like a confused Magikarp. In the end, she settled for a dismissive 'hmph' and a negative movement of her head.

"Yet it is true," Aya insisted thoughtfully, her eyes locking into Kenshin's. None of them would ever forget the hectic, horrible days that had followed Lord Tamekage's death. Or that bloodbath of a battle, out of which Illusio had barely managed to emerge victorious. "The world tends to forget sometimes; but Kenshin and I are very much human. And humans fear many things. It's in our nature as much as forming a Link with Pokemon is."

That, at least, seemed to persuade Sumire. She nodded, sniffling tiredly, yet she continued to wring and unwring her slender fingers nervously. Aya gently held one of her hands onto hers again, smiling in an almost motherly way.

"It isn't shameful to be afraid," her voice was soft, comforting. "It isn't a shame to admit to it either. On the contrary, it's a sign of strength. A warrior's true valor shows through their fears. You might be afraid of losing someone, but you're not afraid of being a human being, with your feelings and your weaknesses, and everything else that makes you one."

"What my sister is trying to tell you," Kenshin explained calmly, "Is that we do not expect you to _not_ fear. We do not expect you to put up an emotionless mask, or to not worry about your brothers' safety. But a war is a war, and Kanetsugu will be honoured to fight by our side. You might not be able to fight yet, but you can still help in your own way. Be strong and brave; you _are_ strong and brave."

"And more than just a little sleepy," Aya added in a humoured tone, seeing the girl's mouth stretch into an involuntary yawn that she'd tried to stifle. "You should go back to sleep already, or else I have a feeling both your brothers will be quite upset."

"Mhmm... you're right, Lady Aya." Sumire replied behind another half-hidden yawn. "I think I'll have to go back to Yoshi. He must have finished fussing over Kanny by now, and when he notices I've been stumbling around like a Spinda, he'll probably get mad," she giggled quietly at the thought, and Aya smiled.

"Alright then. Kenshin can help you back to your room so that you won't be alone in the dark?" She suggested while glancing at her brother, who gave a subtle nod. "And I'm sure this has become clear by now, but we're not going to be training tomorrow. So you can sleep in at your heart's contend."

Sumire laughed again, then stood up, springing on her feet like a Spoink despite her weariness. She granted a quick, unsteady bow to Aya before stumbling behind Kenshin, who was already making for the door. Halfway through, however, she stopped, daring another look towards the female Warlord.

"My Lady... Can I ask something of you?" it was one of these rare times that her voice would get small, hesitant.

"Of course. I'm listening."

"Could you... Could you please take care of my brothers?" She kept staring down at the pristine crystal floor, nervously tapping her foot on it and avoiding the older woman's eyes. "Of course I'll do my best to protect them myself... and I don't mind dying while fighting for Illusio, or while protecting them. But if... If I die on the battlefield, please take care of Yoshichi and Kanny."

Aya's eyes were frozen as she looked towards the girl: the child that had just like that, so simply, declared her acceptance of laying down her life in the middle of a war, while she wasn't even a proper teen yet. Her courage was admirable on that aspect; Aya could clearly remember herself in Sumire's age, a stammering, scared girl not even being able to stand up for herself against the children that would harass her for her half-blood origins.

 _'I wish I'd had your strength back then, Sumire,'_ she thought to herself, and then gave a solemn nod.

"You can count on me," she declared quietly, placing the fingers of her left hand atop the bandages that were wrapped around the right one, covering the Seal. Yet the oath still stood, and the vow she'd just placed on Diancie was one that she intended on keeping, even if it cost her her own life in the process. "I swear upon my honour, and upon Diancie itself; no harm will befall your brothers. I shall make sure of it," quietly, she made another vow, this one to herself; one to protect the young girl that was standing in front of her. The girl - the _child_ \- that was ready to sacrifice her very life for Illusio, for her duty and for her loved ones.

Sumire's lips curved into a genuine, bright smile and she bowed once more, barely keeping herself from tripping on the floor.

"Thank you, Lady Aya!" she exclaimed, and for a moment, Aya saw Kanetsugu in her - the excited young warrior overflowing with energy and optimism, ready to take on life itself. Her smile faltered as the girl turned towards the door again, following Kenshin on the corridor. Sensing her distress, Kenshin reached for her mind with his own, as a gesture of comfort. She accepted it, yet the uneasy feeling that had taken form behind her chest did not retreat.

Even as Kenshin and Sumire left, Aya didn't immediately lie back down, only stared at the dark, storming sky outside of her room's window. Lightning flashed behind the clouds, and the thunder's ominous rumbling reverbated through the castle's crystal walls. Absentmindedly, Aya grip on the blankets tightened as she peered at the storm, as if she was already able to see Nobunaga in the distance.

Suddenly, the dread she was feeling was gone, replaced in seconds by searing fury.

Let Nobunaga come. Let him try attack her kingdom. Let him try to hurt Kanetsugu, or Sumire, or any of its citizens. The Dragon of the North could bare his fangs and snarl at them and taunt and threaten them all he wished.

Yet not all dragons gave a warning, not all dragons hunted for their prey.

And should Nobunaga dare march against the Realm of the Crystals, he'd learn first-hand what exactly the Dragons of Illusio would be willing to become to protect what they held dear.

 _[TO BE CONTINUED]_

* * *

 **Damn, finally done. I have to say I was super excited for introducing Sumire, and starting to develop her personality and relationship with the rest of the Illusians. Though she's not her usual self in this hapter, I thought this would be an intriguing way to introduce her. And Aya's and Kenshin's parent-like relationship to her makes it all the better! Can't wait to throw Yoshichi in there too!**

 **As a matter of fact, Mako and Mizuki were going to be of much more importance to the initial draft of the story, but eventually the plotline changed a little bit and they were no longer necessary. So they -well, mainly Mizuki- were used to promote some of Nobunaga's character.**

 **Anyway... I don't think there's anything else. Things are getting all the more interesting though! But I will try to make the rest of the chapters shorter. I hope you enjoyed this one! ^3^**

 **'till next time!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6:**

Storms had been one of the few constants in Nobunaga's life, and so he had inevitably gotten used to them. Ever since he could remember, he'd always lived in a kingdom plagued by hail, and snow, and rain, as if nature itself held an immense grudge against the land of Dragnor. He knew, of course, that this was most likely impossible; such phenomena were simply what came with living in the northernmost region of the land. Yet he always liked to think that some higher power detested the Kingdom of Dragons as much as he himself did. Maybe whatever was responsible for the terrible unrest in the skies wanted to wipe the life out of that part of Ransei almost as much as him.

But it could have never been _exactly_ as much as what he desired.

Subconsciously, the man tightened his grip around the jutting black scales on the base of Zekrom's neck. His stranglehold was nowhere near strong enough to affect the Guardian even mildly, but sensing the man's unrest through their Link, the Pokemon let out a low grumble, yet was hardly audible through the moaning of the thunder beyond them.

Nobunaga felt it reverbate through him rather than actually hearing it. He relaxed his grip, and sent a reassuring thought towards Zekrom. He was sure Zekrom had received it, despite it making no detectable attempts to respond. Not that he minded its silence; it was already a miracle, the way it had allowed him to summon it, and to establish a Link. The mere thought of such was regarded as something impossible - and dark and horrible by most scrolls and books that had passed through his hands across the years. Ever since he was a child, the Guardians and the Dragon Fathers had been described to him as something too great for the human mind to comprehend. They were above the existence of the Realm of the Living; created by Arceus itself, they were its split essence. To tamper with that essence was regarded as taboo and hubris by most. And, of course, everyone would insist it was impossible; establishing a Link with such a mighty power would destroy a warrior's soul faster than anything else. It would crush the very flame of one's existence. Some even claimed it would even do the unthinkable; turn the offending warrior into Yokai by burning through their aura and driving them mad.

Yet here he was, nothing more than a simple man, having successfully brought forth one of the three Dragon Fathers and even having Linked with it, without evoking its wrath. For now, he was still very much alive. As for the 'human' part, though... that, he was not entirely sure of. He wasn't certain it was necessary, though. If... if all of that was what being human was like, he had no qualms about abandoning it.

But was he truly a simple man? Nobunaga knew that's what many wondered; friends and enemies alike. He had no illusions about himself. He knew he was nothing more than an ordinary warrior. Yet for some reason he could not discern, Fate had bestowed this gift - or curse, or whatever one decided to call it - upon him. He was aware that it could have been any warrior in his stead. It was nothing more than the tricks and whims of destiny that had placed him in this situation.

He decided it was time to pull himself back to reality, as a sudden flash of lightning tore, like a jagged whip, through the leaden clouds. Under its light he spotted the top of Cragspur's stone castle, barely visible in the distance. They were closer than he had initially anticipated, despite becoming accustomed to Zekrom's astonishing speed. The turbine-like formation on the giant dragon's tail shone with a bright blue light as the Pokemon absorbed the energy of the lightning that flashed above them; half a heartbeat later, Zekrom let out a roar mightier than the storm itself, and with another blinding flash, it zoomed towards the castle. Nobunaga leaned forward, hands tightening again - this time out of the genuine need to hold on. Flattened against Zekrom's back he felt not the slightest twinge of fear. In fact, he felt nothing besides a mild rush of adrenaline, and even that was barely enough to keep his senses heightened and his reflexes sharp.

At the speed Zekrom was flying, it didn't take more than a minute to reach their destination. They circled above the sharp formations of rock one more time and, with a warning growl, Zekrom dived and soon it was touching down onto the central outcrop. Nobunaga climbed down with ease, by now having become used to the procedure. Zekrom followed his every movement as he straightened his back. Then, it lifted its radiant crimson eyes towards the sky and huffed.

"If you so desire," Nobunaga responded aloud to the Pokemon's mental request. "But if you may, come back before morning comes."

He was in no place to order a Legend around, of course. Zekrom knew it, too. Both of them were aware that it could squash him with its forepaw, or break him with its jaws, or incinerate him with a flash of lightning any time it wished. Nobunaga was not commanding it; no more than what it let him do.

Yet the pitch-black creature growled softly, and gave a slight nod of its massive head. Then, paying him no other heed, it bolted towards the skies again, raising a gust behind it as it flapped its sturdy wings. A few moments later it had disappeared against the lightless sky. But Nobunaga had no doubts that it would return. It always returned.

He shook the rain off him as he walked into the main corridor of the castle, leaving a dark trail of waterdrops behind him, his leather purple coat flapping around him much alike a sorcerer's garments, golden rim catching the faint light of the torches that were arranged across the walls. The corridor - more of a tunnel carved into the rock, really - was too narrow for his liking . It was nothing like the spacious, overarching caverns of Dragnor's castle. Nobunaga had detested a lot about that ragged, inhospitable fortress, but its wide chambers and corridors had been one of the things he had always enjoyed. A proper dwelling for a Dragon to make into its home.

On his way to the council hall, he came across Ranmaru. The young man looked positively sick; his eyes were hollowed into his skull, his face was all too pale, and his hands were shaking. There was soot smeared across the hems of his sleeves, and Nobunaga supposed that laying Mizuki and Axew to rest according to the traditional ways of Dragnor had taken quite a toll on him. Ranmaru was a great and loyal warrior, but he held great aversion towards any kind of violence. Nobunaga knew he would have to do something about it, sooner or later.

"M-My Lord..." Ranmaru tried to look as tough nonetheless, and he bowed as soon as he stopped in front of the older man. "The funeral of Mizuki and her partner has been fulfilled. The ashes now travel in the wind, and their bones will be delivered back to the land of their forefathers, where it will be their final resting place."

Nobunaga nodded ever so slightly. "Well done, Ranmaru."

As soon as he spoke those words, Nobunaga thought he saw some of the light return to Ranmaru's deep blue eyes. A few words of praise from his Lord were of immense worth to him, Nobunaga knew. Sometimes, he found himself wishing he and the younger warrior could switch places; sometimes, he wished he bore Ranmaru's innocence and purity.

But then he would recall his own purpose, and all those thoughts would vanish. He had a role to fulfill, and he could not get distracted by false dreams of peace and innocence. Those words were nothing but a lie; life had taught him so early enough.

Nobunaga cleared his throat, and spoke once again.

"Summon the others," he said, as he watched Ranmaru get up - still quite shaky on his feet, he noticed. "And alert Naotora that she must take the second round of the night watch."

"But, my Lord-!" Ranmaru gasped, his eyes shooting wide open in confusion. "Isn't that my round, tonight?!"

"I am aware." Nobunaga found it almost comical how Ranmaru seemed dismayed at the idea of being relieved of his duty for the night. "But you've worked hard today considering the funeral arrangements. I believe you must be allowed a good night's rest. You can do Naotora's shift tomorrow in return."

Naotora wouldn't mind; of that, he was certain. She never did. One could argue that she was not able to, of course, but Nobunaga knew it was something else. Something different. Whatever magic ran inside her, whatever made her at least partly human, was strong and intricate enough to give her her own volition. Unlike most, Nobunaga was perfectly sure that Naotora's willingness came from within her own will and her own desires.

Ranmaru's shoulders sagged, and he appeared to be a little more at ease after being informed that he was not being relieved of his duties because of any kind of incompetence. He gave another short bow, this time a little steadier.

"As you wish, my Lord. I will inform the other Lords now," was all he said, but Nobunaga knew he was thankful. Words were not necessary for him to be aware of that.

He and Ranmaru parted ways, and Nobunaga made for the castle's council hall. As soon as Ranmaru had informed his generals about the emergency meeting, they would all come, as they always did. Flying amidst the raging power of nature itself had given him ideas.

And the plan concerning the conquest of the Realm of the Crystals had finally taken full shape within his mind.

* * *

The high winds whistled, and the black pines moaned and cackled as it tore through their branches, raising smaller gusts of leaves and dust. The rocky hills that separated Yaksha from the Kingdom of Cragspur could only do so much against the force of nature, and though the rainclouds were currently plaguing Cragspur, there was no force to hold back the winds that soared down from the north, carrying Nixtorm's frost with them.

Yaksha's castle always seemed eerily quiet and unoccupied, even during the kingdom's brightest days - that is, if the permanently cloudy, murky days of Yaksha could be called such. Yet in such a night it seemed all the more empty, all the more haunted, and even most Dark-type Pokemon would instinctively avoid it if they could. Only a few Murkrow, led by two great Honchkrow, were restlessly perched upon its darkest tower, occassionally cawing against the wind and the rain-less lightning that would once in a while tear through the black skies.

Yet despite the seemingly endless desolation that surrounded the castle, a weak, flickering light could be seen from afar, shining desperately behind one of the hollow-looking windows.

A dark-haired girl sat by the edge of her bed, next to the shimmering light of the single candle she had dared set ablaze. Logic told her there was not much to fear inside of the castle itself, and her partner was by her side as always. Yet in Yaksha, rationality held little strength against the fear the kingdom's dark aura struck into one's soul.

The candlelight barely sufficed to light the room, and thick, foggy shadows still lingered at its furthest corners, seemingly bearing life of their own. Yet despite the spacious area, nothing but a bed and a desk adorned it. The bed itself was large enough for two people to lie comfortably across it, and the sheets were heavy and warm, albeit a little rough to the touch. The desk was a little smaller, and there was no chair, or drawers, or inkpots and quills. Only a few leatherbound books were placed upon it, each bearing its title in gold or silver threat. Should one ignore the windstorm that raged on outside, everything inside the room was terribly still and quiet. Girl and Pokemon sat in an tense, complete silence.

The silence was broken promptly, however, as suddenly the Pokemon - a fierce-looking Nidorina - hissed, its large ears flickering as it stood up on its hind legs, and the pair of spikes on its back rose. The girl, alerted by her partner's reaction and the jolt it conveyed through their Link, stood quickly, eyes instinctively darting across the room in search of anything that could be used as a weapon. But there was nothing.

The air next to the room's shut wooden door seemed to ripple and swirl, and it looked as if a kind of shadowy essence began to seep out of it. Two shadowy figures started taking shape, and soon the darkness dissolved to reveal an absurdly tall man, with lifeless grey skin and blood-red hair held flaring across his back. A short distance from him, a Zoroark took form and shape, its lips parting in a sickening grin, revealing small rows of pointy teeth. Both the man and the Pokemon had turquoise eyes that shone unnaturally amidst the darkness.

Yet despite the terrifying appearance of the pair, and the otherworldy aura that surrounded them, the girl seemed to relax a bit; she reached out towards her own partner, signaling for it to calm down. Nidorina did not seem too eager to comply, but in the end it stopped snarling, and jumped off the bed to stand by its warrior's feet. Both girl and Pokemon bowed their heads shortly.

"Lord Kotaro," the girl spoke calmly, as if she had been expecting the shadow-clad visitor.

A small, feral grin tugged at the mans thin lips. The gesture could have been a well-meant one, but it only served to make him look all the more horrifying.

"Lady Hayakawa," the voice was surprisingly youthful and velvety; almost pleasant. Yet the title had been laced with unmasked irony. "One should not be awake at such an hour. Not if one is not a being of the night."

"The wind is too loud; I couldn't bring myself to sleep. Plus," she added with a hint of calm resignation "it's not as if I have any kind of duty to wake me up early tomorrow."

A sly, quiet chuckle came out of Kotaro's mouth.

"That, my dear, is correct," he admitted, and he shifted his piercing gaze from her to the window, studying the darkness that dwelled outside of it. "The light, though; there are not many forms of life in this land that enjoy it. I suggest you put it out; you never know what kind of... company it could attract."

"Nidorina is strong." Hayakawa insisted. "Whatever comes, if anything at all, I am sure she can face it." As if to second her partner's words, Nidorina let out a soft yet threatening hiss directed at Kotaro's Zoroark. The larger Pokemon seemed amused, however, and it flicked its pointy ears as if to issue a challenge. Nidorina simply growled again.

"If you insist, then it must be true," Kotaro replied in a pondering manner. "Regardless, I believe you had requested my presence earlier?"

"If by earlier you mean several hours ago, then yes, I did," Hayakawa retorted, not seeming the least bit intimidated by the infamous Lord of Yaksha. Zoroark produced a low, amused cackle, and so did Kotaro.

"Someone's quite impatient for a hostage, am I right?" he walked further into the room, approaching Hayakawa. "I had several duties to delay me, if it's so important for you to know. Yet I am here now, aren't I? Is there something you'd like to ask?"

Hayakawa studied him for a few seconds, trying to decipher whether or not he was mocking her. She concluded that he most probably was; but that would hardly be an unusual thing for him.

"I wanted to ask what had become of my father," her voice suddenly faltered, as if she'd been too afraid to ask, and now she was clearly regretting it. "You whisked me away as soon as the battle was over. I want to know if he..." She paused, unable to voice the thought that was darker than the night lurking outside the window. Kotaro sensed her fear, and she knew he was delighted by it. It was quite obvious by the fact that he took his time to offer an answer, staring at her for a little while longer instead.

"If he was dead, _princess_ , I wouldn't be bothered with keeping you in this castle, would I?" he said eventually, passing by her to go and stand next to the window. Lightning bolted through the clouds once again, casting a momentary and dramatic flare around him as his shadow spread across the black and white tiles on the floor.

Hayakawa nibbled on her lower lip thoughtfully for a few seconds. Immense relief threatened to wash over her; but she didn't want to let it pass through her until she was completely sure Kotaro wasn't hiding the truth from her, or playing any games.

"So you're saying he's alive; and that I'm being held here as a hostage... a way to ensure he will comply to Lord Nobunaga's orders? So that he will not rebel against him?"

"You're one clever little girl, then," Kotaro gave an approving tilt of his head, not looking at her. "Ujiyasu's safe and sound in his fortress of stone - well, it's not quite his anymore, but I'm sure you can see the bigger picture."

"So I'm Nobunaga's bargaining chip, then?"

"As long as your father complies with Nobunaga's wishes, I assure you I won't touch a hair of your pretty head," Kotaro grinned malevolently, his eyes giving off that chilling turquoise glow. "And as long as you're a good girl too, your sister and your father will remain in good health."

Hayakawa felt her jaw tightening, and a slight sting of anger flared inside her chest.

So there was no hope of a plan to get out, then. No plan good enough to free her enslaved kingdom, especially not from her current position. Not without endangering the ones she loved the most.

"How do I know you're not lying just to keep me placid?" she dared to say. It was her last chance; a way to get Kotaro to share more information, maybe. A way to know what was really going on outside the room that had become her prison.

"Now, now, you're hurting my feelings," it didn't sound at all like that, but Hawakawa spoke not, and listened. "Even I have some basic standards, princess. Do not let yourself forget that I was once your father's friend."

"Ah yes, a good friend. How dare you call yourself such, after betraying my father's kindness in such a way-"

Her voice was cut short, and Nidorina let out a warning cry as Kotaro was suddenly upon her in a twister of shadows and metal; in a flash, the iron claws of his gauntlets were upon her throat, threatening to cut through it with one deadly swipe.

"Do not fool yourself, Hayakawa," he murmured, another smile playing on his lips as he tasted her frightened heartbeat. "I haven't killed you yet, because Nobunaga ordered me not to; but I could do it any time. And as you very cleverly pointed out, no one, especially your beloved father, would know."

Despite the sweat that she could feel dripping down her forehead, and the cold touch of the claws against her flesh, Hayakawa let out a soft laugh.

"Well, strange that you would be the one to say that," she breathed out. "Considering I clearly heard you; you were the one to ask Lord Nobunaga to send me here instead of killing me."

Kotaro furrowed his brows together, the smile disappearing. He drew back, sheathing the claws back into his gauntlet, looking entirely displeased by the situation in which he had suddenly found himself.

"You have keen ears, don't you?" he mumbled, crossing both arms in front of his chest.

Hayakawa took a slow, hesitant breath and willed her heart to stop beating so uncontrollably. Finally, she straightened her shoulders.

"I do not believe you're an evil man," she eventually said. "Nobunaga is using you, Kotaro. You must see this, and... and help me get back to my father, help him get back Cragspur!" desperation laced her words, and she took half a step forward, as if wanting to go near the man again. "You must tell me Nobunaga's plans. Please."

Kotaro narrowed his eyes, studying her much like a Mightyena would study its downed prey.

"If you think that man would share his plans with me, you may not be as clever as I thought," he said after a long pause. "You know very well what kind of fame I hold across Ransei. Nobunaga knows how to put my talents to good use, but he's not so great of a fool to trust me beyond that. If you were to ask me, he's right about it too."

"But you must know _something_!" she wasn't willing to give up so easily, not when there was the slightest chance of winning Kotaro to her side. "Isn't there any gossip between his warriors? Have you talked to any of his generals? Have you heard the rumours about how he won a- a Legendary Dragon Father to his side?"

"I see your father's stubborness didn't rub off to just your sister, then." Kotaro snorted. "I can acquire information quite easily if that's what I want. But I only do so when it interests me; in this case, I was simply not interested enough to look for it. Thus, I am unable to answer any of your questions."

Hayakawa felt her heart sinking as Kotato walked back towards his partner; he was getting ready to leave, then.

"I have other matters to attent to tonight," he said, confirming her speculations. "I suggest you get to bed. It's not like you'll achieve anything by staring at a measly candlelight all night. It cannot save you."

Shadows started to embrace man and Pokemon, but Hayakawa burst forward, her hand stretching out as if she was trying to hold him back.

" _Wait_!" She cried. "Please! At least tell me what you think he's planning to do!"

She couldn't see his face from where she was standing, and he didn't turn to look at her; but she swore that, for a moment, she saw his shoulders tensing slightly.

"Boundaries have been crossed, and ancient powers have begun to stir in the distance. This war... it will only bring forward chaos the end of which not even I can see the end of. But I suggest you keep as quiet and far away from it as you can, princess. Because it will not be a pretty one."

Hayakawa gasped, ready to ask what he had meant by these words. But the shadows multiplied, and the darkness spread around him and Zoroark like a cloak. A thunder landed somewhere nearby and the girl twitched, her head turning instinctively towards the source of the terrible noise. Nidorina growled, pouncing towards the window in an attempt to locate any possible threat.

When Hayakawa returned her gaze back to where the man had been standing just a couple of seconds ago, she realised he and his Pokemon were gone.

Only Kotaro's words remained, hanging alike an ominous warning above her and her partner's heads...

* * *

 **So, it's been quite a while! Sorry to be gone for a year, it was quite a hard one in terms of exams and schoolwork. I'll go back to updating regularly now, though!**

 **This is more of an exposition chapter, but I hope you enjoy it! Please R &R!**


End file.
